The Gods Of War: Terra Rising
by WarNut88
Summary: A man with a dark, violent past and a longing for death that is denied to him. A woman who has haunted his dreams for millennia. The secrets he unknowingly carries with him and an empire unprepared for the onslaught he will unleash in the name of his homeworld. The seeds of power will be sewn and a galaxy will forever be changed by the flames of war. (Chapter 6 is up!)
1. Prologue

I do not own any of the Tenchi Muyo! characters or anything associated with it except for those characters and ideas produced by me, the author. The events of this story take place in the Tenchi Muyo! OAV universe.

 **UPDATE:** Existing chapters have been been reorganized into fewer albeit longer chapters for easier management and a more novel type of format. The overall story is still intact.

 ** _How swiftly Caesar had surmounted the icy Alps and in his mind conceived immense upheavals, coming war. When he reached the water of the little Rubicon, clearly to the leader through the murky night appeared a mighty image of his country in distress; grief in her face, her white hair streaming from her tower- crowned head. With tresses torn and shoulders bare, she stood before him in sighing, said: "Where further do you march? Where do you take my standards warriors? If lawfully you come if as citizens, this far only is allowed." Then trembling struck the leader's limbs, his hair grew stiff and weakness checked his progress, holding his feet at the river's edge. At last he speaks. "Oh thunderer… surveying great Rome's walls from the Tarpeian Rock. Oh Phrygian, house gods of lulus, clan and mysteries of Quirinus who was carried off to heaven. Oh, Jupiter of Latium seated in lofty Alba and hearths of Vesta. Oh, Rome, equal to the highest deity, favor my plans! Not with impious weapons do I pursue you. Here am I, Caesar, conqueror of land and sea, your own soldier everywhere now too if I am permitted. The man who makes me your enemy, it is he will be the guilty one." Then he broke the barriers of war and through the swollen river swiftly took his standards. When Caesar crossed the flood and reached the opposite bank from Hesperia's forbidden fields, he took his stand and said: "Here I abandoned peace and desecrated law. Fortune, it is you I follow. Farewell to treaties, from now on war is our judge." Hail Caesar. We who are about to die salute you._**

 **-Chronicle from Marcus Lucanus on Julius Caesar's crossing of the River Rubicon.**

 **-EARTH YEAR 5743 AU-**

 **-PLANET ARMAGEDDON-**

The setting sun lit up the surface of Armageddon and made the Governor's Palace and artificial sea glisten and glitter, but made the distant ash wastes look as dead as ever until night fell. Soon the wastes would light up for thousands of miles as an iridescent blue, created from the apocalyptic war that raged here over two centuries ago. Planetary Governor Uriel Severus of the Terran Empire stood out upon his balcony that overlooked the New Aegean Sea trying to admire the view as he waited for his guest to arrive, but it only served as a reminder of past horrors. The governor heard a knock at his chamber door and turned to see one of his aids enter.

"My lord, Professor Cadmos of the Galaxy Academy has just arrived," said the aid.

Severus nodded and in reply said, "Thank you Cleitus. Please show him in."

"Aye my lord," replied Cleitus and turned to the pale man waiting patiently behind him flanked by two palace guards on either side of him. With a gesture of his hand Cleitus waved for the man to enter. Professor Cadmos gave him his thanks and entered the chamber, the door closing behind him.

Professor Cadmos and his escorts made their way over to the balcony where the governor looked on into the distance. By now the sun had set and the distant wastes were glowing signature iridescent blue that dominated the landscape. Cadmos joined Governor Severus on the balcony in looking at this man-made wonder and for a while they just stood and looked. Cadmos could only look on in wonder and amazement. Two centuries ago this planet had been a luscious, vibrant world. Now most of it was nothing more than a giant, radioactive wasteland. Still, the local inhabitants had refused to leave their homes and continued to try and re-cultivate their obliterated world. The Terran Emperor had stepped in as well after the war had ended and since then had worked to atone for his sins. Most had deemed it impossible, but progress could be seen. The vast artificial ocean below was proof of that.

"It's quite beautiful governor," commented Cadmos.

"And just as deadly my friend," replied the governor. "Those wastes can kill a man in a few days if he's unprotected."

"I thought the Emperor's terraforming project was going well here on Armageddon? Are the artificial oceans just as deadly?" asked Cadmos as he gave the governor a look of doubt.

The governor replied reassuringly, "The technology of the Divisio de Scientia has ensured that the New Aegean Sea as well as all other bodies of water and developing environments on this planet are quite free of the planet's massive radioactive effects. But enough of that, let's go inside shall we?" As the two men then ventured inside and closed the balcony door behind them, Cadmos continued their conversation.

"And where is the Emperor? Last I heard he was here on Armageddon to check on the progress of the terraforming project."

"He and Lady Washu of Jurai have returned to Terra for the anniversary of the Unification Wars and left prior to your arrival," said Severus.

 _"The Unification Wars..._ _"_ thought Cadmos. _"The series of conflicts waged by the Terran Emperor in order to drag the people of Earth kicking and screaming into one single nation,"_ he recalled one of his professors telling him those many years ago at the academy. Back then he was still a wet behind the ears assistant lapping up any experience he could get while pursuing his doctorate. The Great Galactic War had ended some twenty years prior to that, the very year he was born in fact. He was lucky to have avoided all those years of bloodshed and constant warfare. No one knows how many died but it was estimated to be in the tens of billions. The Terran and Jurai Empires along with the Galactic Union were all still recovering from the effects of the war two centuries later but so far the peace has been maintained as a result of the armistice. The Terrans ruled over roughly one half of the galaxy while the Juraians and Galactic Union the other.

It wasn't until the Jurai Empire and the Galactic Union joined forces that they were finally able to slow and eventually stop the relentless advance of the Terran Empire. The planet Kanemitsu or Armageddon as it is now known was the high water mark of the conflict. It was here that the final battles of the war were raged and a vibrant world that was once one of the great centers of galactic trade was obliterated. When the Terrans couldn't take it they decided to rain nuclear fire down on the planet and its defenders with the end result being the state the planet is in now. It was also here that the current boundaries of the galaxy were drawn. The planet itself was divided up into different zones with each major power claiming a piece for themselves and it was here that the peace was kept.

Cadmos sighed. The mere complexity of the situation here on Armageddon was enough to make anyone's head hurt. He turned his mind back to the task as hand and replied, "That's unfortunate. I had hoped to meet the Emperor in person."

After making their way into the study, Governor Severus offered Professor Cadmos a seat in a leather chair that sat before a roaring fire while the two guards stood outside the doorway. The governor then made his way over to a large oak table on which sat a number of crystal decanters that contained a smorgasbord of spirits. He chose one that contained an amber spirit and opened it and put his nose to it, taking in the aged smell of amasec. As he grabbed two glasses and began to fill them, Cadmos amused himself by looking around the study. It was a far cry from the rest of the Governor's Palace which was mostly of white marble and granite while as most of this study was predominantly wood. As he continued to survey his surroundings a large, old oil painting on the wall caught his attention. The painting portrayed a series of warriors encased in black, blood stained armor charging gallantly towards a defensive wall being desperately held by Juraian soldiers. The light from the sun was piercing through the smoke from the battle and lit up the warriors in black as if they were divine. At the head of their charge was a large, magnificent crimson standard emblazoned with gold. At the center was an eagle surrounded by a wreath of olive leaves and perched on a branch and below were large letters that read _SPQR._ It was lit up by the light of the sun as well and was being carried by a gravely wounded, white haired man who held it high for all to see. Leading them on at the front with the standard bearer was who Cadmos presumed to be the leader. The man brandished an ornate sword that seemed to have a white flame writhing around it and the blade was brighter than any sun. He stood tall on the defensive wall and pointed the weapon towards the enemy defenders and looking back urged his men to surge ever onward into the wall of enemy fire.

Behind the Juraian defenders stood Tenju, the ginormous tree that served as the Imperial Palace for the Royal Family of Jurai. The painting was a scene of absolute chaos, desperation and death and at the same time was also a beautiful depiction of glory, determination and sacrifice. As Cadmos continued to observe the painting it was the standard in this work of art that caught his attention among all other things. There was something so familiar about it. As he continued to think on this he finally recalled reading a description of the standard in an eye-witness account during his research of the Immortals and the Seven Days War. He was now sure that this man he had come to see was an original survivor of this conflict, though most people would dismiss this notion as being ludicrous. The battle portrayed in the painting took place almost four millennia ago. The chance that the governor of this planet was an original survivor was almost impossible. There could be thousands of other people in the galaxy that could bare the same name as this man and just as well any one of them could be the man Cadmos has so desperately sought after. No, he was sure of it. This is the man Cadmos has sought after for so long.

"The Battle of Heavens' Tree," said a voice from behind.

Cadmos turned his gaze to Severus who handed him a glass of the amber spirit and took his seat and turned his gaze to the antique painting. Cadmos gave his thanks and took a drink of the liquor; it had a strong taste and burned all the way down his throat. Severus followed suit and took a drink of the liquor as well taking in its full flavor.

"Are you familiar with it professor?"

"Oh yes, very much so. That's why I' am here."

"And you are with the Historical Department of the Galaxy Academy, correct?"

"That is correct, governor," replied Cadmos.

"Then tell me what you know of it if you would."

"Very well," said Cadmos confidently. "The Battle of Heavens' Tree was the last ditch effort for the attacking Terran forces to secure their independence from the Juraian Empire in the Seven Days War. The charge portrayed in the painting succeeded in penetrating the palace's outer defenses, but unfortunately the Terrans were unable to penetrate the palace itself. There are many questions I need answered and only you can answer them... Captain Nicolai Karzanovich.

Severus stopped drinking and looked at the professor with a wide-eyed look for a few moments. He then set his glass down on the small, oak table that sat between the two men's chair and stood up. Cadmos watched his as he walked over to the fire place. Lacing his hands together behind his back the governor walked to the front of the fireplace and stopped.

"I'll not ask how you came to know this information professor," the governor said coldly.

"I have my ways sir."

"By knowing this fact I could have you locked up for the rest of your life; even executed. You were aware of these risks I assume?"

"I was," Cadmos replied simply.

"And yet you still came, knowing what the consequences might be?"

"Yes."

For a time the governor continued to look into the fire as thoughts and decisions raced through his mind.

"Guards!" he said aloud. The two men came rushing in and snapped to attention.

Cadmos began to fear that he would have to face the consequences of his actions. If that was the case then there would be no power in the entire universe that could help him now.

"Yes sir?" asked one of the guards.

"Leave us and make sure that we are not disturbed." The guard hammered his fist to his chest and bowed.

"As you wish my lord," replied the guard and along with his counterpart left the room. Before he spoke Severus waited until he heard his chamber door close to make sure they were alone.

"It's said that they were the greatest fighting force in the history of all mankind," he started to say. "It is true that the forces that assaulted Jurai are possibly considered to be the greatest fighting force in history, but it was the Immortals who were responsible for our many victories during the war against the Shank Pirates and their allies. Without them we wouldn't have even gotten within a thousand light years of the Jurai home system, let alone gotten as far as we did on the surface."

"My research says that...", Cadmos started to say before being cut off.

"Your research is based on relatively few facts my friend. Your books documented a mostly false history, the true story has never been fully told. Time and the will of the victors has a way of smudging fact over long periods if not outright omitting them."

"Then tell me, who were the Immortals really?" Cadmos asked curiously.

"They were once the protectors and rulers of an ancient empire on Terra for over a thousand years. When their mighty empire fell, their sense of purpose was lost and they scattered across to the four corners of the Earth." Severus then made his way over to the oil painting, reaching out with his hand and placed it on the two men in the center of the painting. "It was Durante and Vincere who nearly led us to victory on Jurai after we were betrayed. Our sacrifices during the war and the promises made to us by the Juraians and the Galactic Union were thrown to the way side in the name of self interest," said Severus with a hint of disdain as he turned around to face the professor.

"You wish to know who the Immortals are? Then I shall tell you their story," he said as he placed his hand back on the two men in the painting. "I shall tell you about these gods of war."


	2. Chapter I - Dreams & Nightmares

**-3746 YEARS PRIOR, EARTH YEAR 1997 AD-**

 _She stood alone. The fires around her spreading, screams echoing in the night as smoke billowed up from the city around her as it burned. She began to walk and surveyed the chaotic scene before her. The ground was littered with the bodies of the fallen people who once lived there; men, women and children. None had been spared. In the distance the sounds of battle could be heard; shouts and calls, gunfire and explosions. She stopped abruptly and looked up to see the ginormous tree towering over her, its canopy of bare branches spreading for over a kilometer above the burning city. It was dead. Suddenly a wall of flames came rushing towards her, engulfing her as she raised her arms in a futile attempt to protect herself. Upon realization she was not harmed she lowered her arms and looked down at her hands, horrified to see that they were red with blood. Her instinct beckoned her to look up and out of the fire the shape of a figure began to emerge. It was a man, encased in battle scarred armor with a rifle slung over his shoulder. The face was gritty and obscured by soot but the eyes could clearly be seen, their gaze piercing right through her. There was no emotion in them other than hatred but she sensed there was something else there. A great sadness could be seen emanating from them as well. She felt there was a familiarity here, that she somehow knew this person. The man then raised his arm, pointing a pistol at her and slowly but firmly cocked the hammer. Pointing the weapon he stopped and stared at her for but a moment. A single tear could clearly be seen rolling down his cheek before he pulled the trigger, the sound of the shot ringing out into the night._

Washu shot up out of bed, gasping for breath and clutching at her chest. She looked down at her hands checking for blood that isn't there and at her chest looking for an entry to the wound she didn't receive. Shuddering, bathed in sweat, she kneads her breastbone with the heel of her hand while slowly focusing on the reality of her safety. Cradling her head between her knees she catches her breath and slowly collects herself.

 _"That damn dream again,"_ she thought to herself. _"No not a dream, a recurring nightmare."_

She sighed and gave a half-hearted laugh, telling herself it was nothing more than a simple execution of cause and effect.

" _Cause…"_ she thought for a moment. _"Caused by a habitual habit of eating late, not getting enough sleep and being overworked with the effect is being an increase in stress and anxiety thus leading to my current situation of recurring nightmares."_

Yes that was it. Just a collection of bad habits resulting in a negative outcome, nothing more. Once she had calmed herself Washu clambered out of bed and with a wave of her hand the room she had created for herself disappeared while simultaneously being replaced by a magnificent bathroom. She did not always have the time or rather make the time to interrupt her important research. To make her way back to the house via the pseudo space doorway that connected her inter-dimensional lab and the broom closet in the Masaki home was too bothersome and things such as sleeping and eating was something she could simply do here, often for days at a time. When she had been gone for too long however Sasami or one of the other members of the bustling Masaki household (with the sole exception of Ryoko) would come and check in on her or remind her to come and eat a home cooked meal while socializing with the rest of the human race. It was nowhere near as bad as it used to be when she first moved in but still once in a while she had to indulge herself in the solitude of her work.

She snapped her fingers and the shower turned on while automatically setting itself to the perfect temperature as she undid the clasps holding her hair together. Lazily she dropped her pajamas and other garments onto the ground and stepped into the shower. Immediately she felt more relaxed as the hot water washed over her and for a while she simply stood there before she pulled her long, crimson hair back behind her head as she began to wash it and allow the water to clear the soap from her eyes. As she did so she thought back to the man in her nightmare. He seemed so familiar, as if she knew him from so very long ago. She remembered his stare and how uncomfortable it made her felt; how afraid it made her feel but at the same time she couldn't overlook the sadness and reluctance in his eyes either. It was as if he knew her as well and that they shared some sort of bond albeit it seemed unlikely. She shook her head, expelling the thought from her mind. There was enough work to be done today without a silly nightmare distracting her but for now she wanted to finish showering and get some decent food in her before starting the day. After she had finished her shower, dried herself off and got dressed in her usual attire she made her way from the lab back to the house.

"Good morning!" she exclaimed with a beaming face as she opened the closet door, but stopped short when she saw the dining area was empty, void of all the usual selection of morning delicacies prepared by Sasami and the people who eat them.

"You forgot didn't you?" said an all too familiar voice. Washu looked up to see Ryoko lying on her usual spot on one of the main support beams of the house.

"And what _exactly_ did I forget?" replied Washu with a hint of curiosity in her voice.

"So you _did_ forget. Sasami went with Mihoshi and Noboyuki to visit an old school friend of his at the hospital in Tokyo for a few days while he's recovering from his back surgery." Ryoko slowly turned over onto her stomach and cast her gaze onto the young girl who claimed to be her "loving" mother. The very idea that Washu was Ryoko's biological mother, creator was still very mind-numbing to Ryoko.

"Oh was that today? My how time flies when you're busy unraveling the mysteries of the universe!"

"They left two days ago…," said Ryoko with a look of disbelief on her face. "Seriously for a _genius_ you can be pretty dense sometimes. Explains where Mihoshi gets it from." Ryoko proceeded to have a laugh at this point, still not believing that someone like Washu was related to a ditz like Mihoshi.

 _"So we're back to that again are we?"_ thought Washu as she gave a heavy sigh. To make a long story short Washu had gotten quite drunk a few Christmases' ago and made the revelation of her and Mihoshi's genetic relation via Washu's marriage to a member of the Kuramitsu family who was in fact Mihoshi's great great grandfather. Since then Ryoko could not resist teasing her on this fact every chance she got to Washu's great ire.

"You know Ryoko…," Washu started to say with a calm voice. "I've always wondered if any of those genetic similarities you so often mention are also present in you."

Ryoko's eyes widened as the mischievous grin she had learned to fear appeared on Washu's face. More often than not this led to Ryoko becoming an unwilling participant in experiments she had no desire to be a part of and they lasted as long as the mad genius willed them to. Ryoko raised her hands with a nervous laugh and apologized profusely before offering to make breakfast. Washu had gotten what she wanted; retribution for Ryoko's taunting and a hot meal without having to make it herself. As Ryoko began to cook eggs and make tea Washu took a seat at the table flush with her recent and rapid victory over her daughter. She picked up the newspaper lying crumpled on top of the table only to discover it was the same paper she had been reading three days ago. Concealing her chagrin she began reading where she had left off as she waited for her breakfast or rather for the attempt of making it would end up being.

"Where is Tokimi anyway?" Washu looked around and realized her wayward sister was missing along with the newest edition of the morning paper. Usually she was the one who brought in in for Washu to read with her breakfast, the fact that she hadn't greatly irked the red haired genius.

"She said she had some "universal business" to take care of and also said that _someone_ has to keep creation going," replied Ryoko as she turned over the eggs and did her best to prevent them from burning.

"Well that's nice." Washu turned the page and continued reading the paper, oblivious to her own nonchalant response.

Ryoko couldn't help but flinch at this. _"For a goddess who supposedly had a hand in creating the whole universe she sure shirks her duties to oversee it,"_ thought Ryoko.

She sighed and took the eggs out of the pan and separated them onto two separate plates waiting on a serving tray. She then put two cups of tea on it as well and made her way to the table. Ryoko handed Washu her food and sat down across from her with her own as they began eating and trying to enjoy each other's company which was easier said than done with the amount of animosity Ryoko still held towards Washu. It was Washu who had convinced Tenchi to give up plowing fields and start reading books instead by sending him to go study at the Galaxy Academy. Ryoko understood that Tenchi was in line to become Emperor of Jurai one day and needed an education to go with it but she couldn't stand that he would be gone for so long. Still with Tenchi's newfound powers he could return and visit whenever he wanted at a moment's notice though he had yet to do so. Ayeka and Noike had accompanied him to the academy and then returned to Jurai to help Ayeka's mother Misaki run things for a while though Ryoko knew it was nothing more than a convenient excuse for them to stay close to Tenchi.

Ryoko had tried to go as well but with her checkered past with the Jurai Empire she was barred from setting foot anywhere near the planet Jurai let alone the Galaxy Academy which was the focal point of knowledge and understanding in the galactic community. That and Washu had forbade it as well as she didn't want anyone or anything distracting Tenchi from his studies. In a sense over the years Washu and Tenchi had developed a more mature relationship like that between a mother and son rather than a man and a woman being in love. She loved him as much as the other girls but had stepped aside in order to let Ryoko and the others have their chance at being with him. Washu had had her moment in the sun many thousands of years ago and lost it and at this point she was content with just playing the parent to a bunch of rowdy kids. As they continued to eat in silence Washu peaked around her paper and saw how uncomfortable the situation was becoming. She then saw the rays of warm light streaming through the windows and gradually creeping across the floor towards the table. Folding up the paper she was reading and placing it on the table Washu looked up at Ryoko.

"Why don't we eat outside instead?" asked Washu with a smile before she turned her head, looking outside. "The weather seems really nice."

Ryoko glanced up at Washu and then to the windows. Going back to Washu and reading her face for any sort of sign that it was an elaborate trap but Ryoko saw no mischief in her mother's complexion and determined the gesture was genuine.

"You know that sounds like a great idea, I'm tired of this empty table anyway," replied Ryoko before she smiled back. The unlikely mother and daughter pair then picked up their dishes and proceeded outside to embrace the warm sun and the sound of nature singing. 

* * *

**-PORT OF YOKOHAMA-**

Durante was awoken suddenly by a Japanese man kicking him in the side. Immediately he jumped up and grabbed the man by the collar, slamming him against the bulkhead of the ship while simultaneously brandishing a knife and holding it to his throat.

"Relax gaijin," said the startled man in broken English as he raised his hands. "We pulling into port right now. You ask me to wake you when we arrive."

Durante gave a grunt and released his grasp on the man, dropping him to the floor. Collecting himself he picked up his duffel bag containing his meager belongings and threw it over his shoulder.

"You should be more careful in the future friend, waking people the way you do is a good way to end up dead," said Durante in a low voice as he took out a pack of cigarettes from his coat pocket. Japanese was but one of many languages he mastered over the centuries, just another skill added to his repertoire. He took one out of the pack and put it into his mouth, lit it and breathed deep before exhaling the smoke. He always preferred unfiltered tobacco, in his mind it was the only correct way to smoke. He looked at the man picking himself up off the floor and offered him one as well. The man looked at him wearily but accepted the offer. Durante lit his cigarette as well and for a moment the two men stood there and said nothing.

"When will I get the rest of my gear?" Durante took another hit of his cigarette.

"Ah your Japanese is very good for a foreigner I must say. It will follow you within the next few weeks," replied the man. "Just make sure to contact us at the location we agreed upon and we will forward it to wherever you are."

"A few weeks!?" yelled Durante. He wasn't happy upon hearing this, his gear had left on a separate ship the day he did but it was out of his control. He would have to be patient and wait.

"Hey man this is Japan. Do you have any idea how difficult and fraught with risk it is to smuggle weapons into this country? If I am caught I'm going to prison for a very long time, possibly for life. Which reminds me…you need to pay the other half of your fee." The man gave Durante a crooked smile as the smoke from his cigarette rose up into the air before putting out his hand for the money as if he was a beggar on the street.

"First give me part of the shipment you promised." Durante dropped his cigarette bud on the floor and put it out with his boot. Likewise the man put out his cigarette and walked over to a part of the bulkhead and removed a false piece from the far wall, no doubt using it to smuggle in certain said items. The man reached in and removed the contents it was concealing before reinstalling the false cover piece. He made his way back over to Durante and handed him a black box so he could verify its contents.

Inside the first thing Durante saw was a pistol. Thought it was a rather small weapon it was perfect for concealment. It was an older Polish Radom P64 pistol, a relic of the Cold War chambered in 9x18mm. He cleared the weapon and functioned checked it to make sure it worked properly before putting it back into the box which also contained a spare magazine for the gun, some boxes of ammunition and a number of forged documents such as passports, a fake driver's license and immigration papers. Getting caught in this country being undocumented would only make his situation that much more difficult and going disguised as a typical tourist was the best way to blend in. In turn Durante handed the man a large number of unmarked bills before putting the effects into his duffel bag and began making his way to the upper deck.

"Good luck gaijin." The cheap grinned smuggler counted the money before putting it into his pocket and returnrf to his regular duties aboard the ship.

Durante got up to the upper deck and lit up another cigarette, a bad habit true but one he enjoyed none the less. He could smell the salty sea air and hear the birds squawking all around the port with the usual and sudden horns blaring as ships made their way to and from the open sea. Durante thought back to the perplexing dream had during the journey from the Asian mainland before being awakened. He had long dreamed about the woman with red hair but never had he dreamed about killing her let alone in such an odd and unfamiliar setting. His dreams about her were one of the few enjoyable things he had seared into his mind among all the bad memories of war and death. Who she was he did not know let alone if she actually even existed which he doubted. Perhaps it was simply a defense mechanism his mind had developed to cope with his ever increasing stress and depression. Such things didn't matter however, dreams were just that: dreams. He sighed and made his way off the ship and deeper into the port heading towards the inner city. 

* * *

Durante quietly looked out the window at the passing scenery from the cabin of the train thinking of the tasks that lay ahead. He had come to Tokyo for a personal reason, not the usual mercenary job in some far off warzone the majority of the world has never heard of let alone cares about. He had come to Tokyo to see a man who was currently in hospital, an old friend and comrade. Together they had gotten through some of the worst the 20th century was able to throw at them during the chaos and unimaginable magnitude of the fighting that was on the Eastern Front during the Second World War. To this day the cold still got to Durante and he could not help but think of the frozen hell that was winter in Stalingrad which had been some of the worst of the fighting during the war. The mere thought caused Durante to tighten the hold on his coat as he recalled the conditions in his mind; the cold of Stalingrad that winter of 1942 to 1943 had been excruciating.

He remembered that in a day the temperature could run up and down -25 degrees or more. Your breath turned to ice as you breathed out and if you breathed on your glove a thin film of ice immediately formed. You couldn't eat anything because all of the food; the bread, sausage, and eggs would virtually turn into stone. To keep your hands from freezing you had to clap half the time or play games with them to keep the blood circulation going. If a man wasn't careful he could freeze to death in his sleep and be nothing more than another frozen corpse strewn about the field the next morning. Durante cleared his mind of these memories and thought back to the other part of the reason he was here, a man who should've been killed off long ago. He had disappeared after the war once victory was secured in Berlin and he had been on the run ever since. Back then he was known as Heinrich Muller, head of the Gestapo and the man responsible for a series of war crimes including helping to implement the so called final solution. To the world he was already dead. He even had a death certificate saying he died in August of 1945 in Berlin and was buried in an unmarked grave. Durante knew better however, an Immortal does not die so easily and only recently had he finally found out where he is. In the process of finding out this information his friend, Nicolai Karzanovich had paid the price and was currently recovering after suffering injuries at the hands of this man. Killing Nicolai would have only drawn unnecessary attention to Muller and ultimately would have been pointless as time itself would do the job for him.

Even though the Nicolai was now in his 70's he was still very much coherent and active for his age. He had stumbled upon Muller by pure accident while visiting this country as part of his desire to see the world once more before he passes on to the next. The benefit of this was that even though Nicolai knew who Muller was in term of his old identity Muller himself had no idea who he was or of his close relationship with Durante. To this particular Immortal, Nicolai was simply a ghost from another time who happened to recognize him from dark days past. Immortals often took on different identities every few decades to hide their true nature, whether it is by faking their death or simply moving on to another location and taking on a new name and identity. Muller had covered his tracks with the death certificate, a grave and also the fact Immortals do not age past their prime years of youth which was more than enough for him to disappear and stay hidden. Durante himself had used the same trick more than once to hide his identity when others had gotten too close. Nicolai accusing this man of being Muller would seem like the ravings of a senile old man to any would be Nazi hunter or other legal authority which is why he had contacted Durante from the hospital. He has told the local police he had simply been mugged and nothing more, no details of his assailant.

Durante felt the train begin to slow down as his stop for the hospital came up and eventually slowed to a stop with a sudden lurch. He got up and grabbed his duffel bag from the seat next to him, throwing it over his shoulder and made his way off the train with a sea of people around him. He eventually found a sign with directions in order to make his way to the hospital but had trouble reading the kanji. He may have mastered the Japanese language but he had always struggled with their writing system, especially since the when the last time he was in the country was roughly a century ago. For a while he just stood there trying to decipher the letters in his head until a voice from behind him called out.

"Do you need some help?" said someone from behind in English.

Durante turned around to see a Japanese man standing there with a woman and young girl flanking him on either side. He was middle aged with dark hair, of an average build and his facial features were dominated by a mustache and glasses. The woman next to him was young, quite tall and had dark skin with long blonde hair complimented by a pair of blue eyes while the younger girl was of a much fairer complexion with a rather odd hair color of teal and a set of melon-pink eyes. Durante surmised it was simply one of the many fads the younger generation of this country had adopted. He was not one to readily take help from strangers or anyone in general but for the sake of time he relented.

"Yes I'm trying to make my way to the Tokyo Saiseikai Central Hospital," replied Durante in Japanese.

The man responded with a look of surprise on his face and then replied, "Actually we're making our way there ourselves. Perhaps you'd like to join us? We were just about to get a cab."

Durante agreed and they began making their way over to the street in order to wave down a taxi. Durante looked around at the city and the sea of busy people going about their day. The progress was amazing since the last time Durante had been in the country. Back then the Japanese had just opened up their isolated borders to foreigners and only begun to modernize. Now it was one of the economic powerhouses of the world.

"I'm Noboyuki Masaki by the way," said the man. Durante had forgotten how rude it was to not introduce oneself in this country. He of course had no intention of giving his real name and instead used the false name under his fake passport. The name had been thought up on the fly in order to expedite the creation of the false papers but worst of all he had gotten it out of a book he was reading at the time he made the arrangements.

"Dantès," replied Durante as he shook Noboyuki's hand. "My name is Edmond Dantès."

"Nice to meet you Edmond. This is Mihoshi and Sasami," said Noboyuki as he gestured to the two girls walking with him.

The two girls smiled and gave a polite wave but said nothing. Durante gave a nod before they ended up at the edge of the sidewalk. A large crowd of people were waiting as they all clamored to get one of the taxis that were waiting or wave down one on the street. Noboyuki for a long while tried in vain to get one for their group before Durante eventually grew tired of waiting and ran out of patience. Taking the duffel bag off his shoulder he placed it on the ground and turned to Mihoshi.

"Could you watch my bag for a moment?" he asked her in a polite tone. The girl blinked at him for a moment before realizing he was speaking to her.

"Oh! Well…um sure, I guess but where are you going?" she asked with a puzzled look on her face.

Durante could immediately tell from her demeanor she was not one of the brightest stars in the sky. He did not think her stupid but she was certainly ditzy. The younger girl seemed to sense this and stood by the bag saying she would watch it instead. Durante thanked her before turning and began cutting through the crowd, making his way to the front while at the same time receiving a number of glares and nasty looks from those he was going past. When he got to the front he began trying to wave down a cab but one after another simply drove by or blatantly ignored him. Finally he had had enough and started scanning the street until he spotted what looked to be an empty taxi. He then stepped out into the street in front of the vehicle which came to a sudden and screeching stop all the while the horn was blazing and people started screaming. Noboyuki and the others came rushing to the front of the crowd to see what had happened. The driver stepped out of the car with a pale but rather angry look on his face and approached Durante.

"Are you crazy!?" he shouted. "Are you trying to commit suicide or something!?"

Durante calmly walked passed him, ignoring his continued tirade and opened the back door to the car much to the cab driver's amazement and shock. He then motioned for Noboyuki and the girls to come over whom thankfully had not forgotten his bag.

"Are you alright!?" asked Sasami with a look of worry and disbelief on her face as she came running over.

Durante assured her he was fine and took the duffel bag from her hands, not noticing the small framed girl carried it with little effort. The angry taxi driver then approached him again, continuing his tirade. Durante interrupted him and asked that he take him and the others to their desired location. The man initially refused, cursing at him.

"Fuck you man, I'm off the meter. I'm not taking you…anywhe…," he started but then suddenly stopped. Durante had produced a few sizably large bills of local currency from his pocket and waved it in front of his face.

"I'll pay you triple your rate if you shut up, put my bag in the trunk and take us to the destination I mentioned before." There was no mistaking the arrogant and authoritative tone in Durante's voice. A tone cultivated from centuries of leading and commanding men in combat from the smallest squad to entire armies.

The taxi driver could not resist the allure of such a large amount of money and went about a sudden change of heart. He suddenly became very polite and cooperative. Gleefully he took the duffel bag and tossed it into the trunk of the car and he then insisted they pile into the car. The taxi drove off, leaving behind them the crowd of disbelieving onlookers.

"You certainly have a way of getting things done!" Noboyuki gave a hearty from the back seat while Mihoshi and Sasami sat there quietly, seemingly still trying to process what had just happened. So far their impression of the man was one of concern, thinking him perhaps suicidal or mentally unhinged.

"Don't you think that was a bit reckless of you?" asked Sasami with a sincere look of disapproval on her face. "What if he hadn't stopped?"

"Then he'd be a whole lot flatter and I'd be that much poorer!" said the driver before giving a chuckle, interrupting the conversation. Durante shot him a stony glare and the smile from the driver's face quickly disappeared as he turned his attention and his eyes back to the road.

"Sometimes one needs to take extreme measures in order to achieve results. I took a risk and achieved the result of getting the transportation we needed," replied Durante. He had always irked people over the no nonsense, blunt way he conducted himself but he preferred cutting out the niceties and getting straight to the point.

Sasami folded her arms and sat back into her seat, not bothering to respond to the statement. She hadn't known this man long but was already sure she didn't like him very much and the rather direct demeanor. She had met such men before back on Jurai when she was just a little girl and they had all been military types. This is the type of man she correctly surmised Durante to be.

"So…where are you from?" blurted out Mihoshi.

"Nowhere in particular," replied Durante as he gazed out the window, watching the passing cars and people on the sidewalks.

"Well where are you coming from then?"

"Greater Asia, I was on business there before being called here to see a friend," he replied, keeping his response to the question purposefully vague. He had no interest in small talk whatsoever, rather concentrating on the task of getting to his friend as quickly as possible. He appreciated these people's concern and kindness which was a rarity in his work, but he had no real interest in getting to know them or for them to know more about him. For now they were simply a means to an end.

"Oh what part? What did you do there?" Mihoshi continued to insist. At this point Durante was quickly getting annoyed and his temper began to flare. Noboyuki seemed to notice this and quickly intervened.

"That's enough Mihoshi," interjected Noboyuki. "A man's business is his own and it's not polite to ask so many questions."

"Oh I'm sorry! I get so chatty sometimes!" Mihoshi had always been what many considered to be empty-headed or oblivious to many things including social cues but she had always been lucky. So lucky in fact some were convinced it was all just a facade to mask her true genius. Washu would no doubt disagree to the point she was red in the face.

Durante began to loathe the sound of this woman's voice at this point but was grateful Noboyuki had gotten her to stop asking questions and be quiet. For the rest of the car ride no one said anything until they had arrived at the hospital. Durante paid the taxi driver what he had promised despite Noboyuki's objection and trying to pay part of the fee which Durante refused. If there was one thing he valued above anything else it was keeping his word, whether it be for good or ill. They got out of the car while Durante grabbed his bag out of the trunk and then made their way inside the hospital. He followed Noboyuki and the others to the front desk to inquire about the two men they had come to see and discovered that they were both assigned to the same recovery room. After they had made their way up to the third floor it was there that they found the room and the patients it held. Noboyuki and the others made their way over to a man lying on his side and began talking with him; asking how he felt, if he need anything. The usual small talk one would expect in such a setting. Durante grabbed a chair and made his way past the others and over to an older man lying in bed next to a large window who busy gazing out at the city below.

"Hello Nicolai," Durante said in Russian. The older man turned his head to face whoever it was talking to him. He recognized Durante and a warm smile appeared on his face, his eyes beginning to tear up at the sight of his old comrade. Weakly and with some shaking he extended out his hand to Durante who grasped it tenderly as he put down the chair and took a seat next to his side.

"How are you old friend?" asked Durante, no doubt concerned for his friend's well being.

Nicolai wiped the tears from his eyes and replied raspily, "I've been better. Just a few broken ribs and some gashes, nothing serious. I wasn't planning on running into any old ghosts on this last trip, let alone ending up in this death house."

Durante and Nicolai had no love of hospitals given their past wartime experiences. To them it was a place of blood and suffering filled with the sounds of the wounded and of the dying. Durante knew that Nicolai wanted to leave here and would see to it as soon as possible but in the meantime they had to discuss Muller.

"Are you absolutely sure it was him?"

"Right to business as always," replied Nicolai before giving a weak laugh. "Without a doubt, I'd know that bastard's face anywhere. But how is he still alive, let alone still so young? Hell he should have been long dead by now…" Nicolai stopped his sentence short when he saw the look on Durante' face. There was no surprise in it and his eyes were diverted away.

"He's like you, isn't he?" asked Nicolai with a solemn look. "One of those other Immortals you have spoken of before. And now it seems he will continue on with his life, not answering for his crimes."

"He'll answer to me," replied Durante angrily. "I will take his head and put an end to his miserable existence. Not just for us, but for all those poor souls who perished in the prisons and the camps."

"Yes. Yes we'll get him….," started Nicolai before he started to cough violently. Durante helped him sit up in bed and patted his back in an effort to help him clear his lungs. All the years of smoking had taken their toll and Durante knew he wouldn't be around much longer even if he survived his current injuries. Once the coughing fit had subsided Nicolai pointed to the envelope sitting on the table next to his bed. Durante grabbed it and opened it up, revealing a set of pictures. He began flipping through them with most of them just being pictures of Nicolai's trip until he came to one focused solely on a man whom Durante immediately recognized as being Muller.

"When and where was this photo taken?" There was an eagerness in Durante's voice, desperate to know the location of his enemy.

Nicolai coughed again before he replied, "Here in the city about three days ago, I don't remember exactly where. I wasn't sure if it was him at first and so decided to follow for a while. When he caught sight of me I took the photo and ran. He sent some of his men after me who roughed me up and smashed my camera. Luckily they didn't bother checking for the film I had already removed. When I got the chance I had one of the nurses get it developed for me."

"You took a stupid risk!" replied Durante, scolding his friend. "They could have killed you."

"And how many stupid risks did _you_ take during the war? I seem to recall a _certain_ someone running through an artillery barrage over an equally stupid bet."

"Probably because unlike you I have the devil's luck and could get away with it."

"Yes if you call being drunk and immortal the devil's luck," replied Nicolai as he rolled his eyes. "I also seem to remember you taking a piece of German shrapnel in the ass on your back to our lines."

For a moment the two men looked at each other with stone faces before cracking a set of smiles and erupted into laughter. For the rest of the time they reminisced about their past experiences, focusing only on the good times during the war if anyone could believe such a thing possible and avoiding the other less mentionable memories. For a time after the war Durante had lived in the Soviet Union with Nicolai and even became a citizen, staying in the army and building a career. Soon after Nicolai had gotten re-married and started his own life Durante had grown discontent with the regime and left the country, going back to mercenary work and had been there ever since. After some time passed Durante was interrupted by a nurse who had come to check Nicolai's vitals. After inquiring with her when Nicolai could leave the hospital and being told that it would be some time Nicolai flew went into a rage. Shouting and cursing in his native tongue he began getting out of bed as Durante tried in vain to calm him down. Noboyuki came running over to see what the trouble was and see if he could help.

"What's wrong with him?" he asked. Noboyuki helped to restrain the older man but did so in a way as to not injure him, recalling the fact that his enhanced strength via his nano-machines could cause great harm.

Durante eventually forced Nicolai back into his bed before replying, "He doesn't want to stay in the hospital but even if they release him I can't take him anywhere."

"You don't have a place to stay?" replied Noboyuki.

"I just arrived in this country so no."

Noboyuki saw an opportunity here as he had been desperate to fill the vacant guest house since Tenchi and the others had left for space. The man was a foreigner but appeared to have more than enough money given what had happened with the taxi even though he didn't exactly look the part and smelled like an overgrown fish. However renting out the guest house would definitely bring in some very much needed income. Ryoko didn't work at all while Washu didn't work in a sense that brought in any actual money. Sasami at least earned her keep by cooking and cleaning around the house while Mihoshi brought in some money from her salary at the Galaxy Police. He knew the risks involved having outsiders come to stay at the house given the secrets it held but in a worst case scenario he could always ask Washu to erase their memories if need be. What's the worst that could happen? 

* * *

**-MASAKI RESIDENCE-**

"YOU DID WHAT!?" Ryoko shouted at the top of her lungs. Noboyuki shrank before her unyielding tirade and backed away cautiously. Raising his hands, he laughed nervously as he attempted to calm one of the most powerful beings in the galaxy.

"Well…we need the money and they were willing to pay the price I asked for renting out the guest house. Plus you don't exactly contribute much in the way of money…," replied Noboyuki before Ryoko cut him off mid-sentence.

"What's that supposed to mean? I contribute plenty!" Ryoko was never good at taking any kind of criticism and was always quick to go on the defensive in response.

Noboyuki however wasn't going to back down this time. On more than one occasion when he had challenged Ryoko she had ended up walking all over him. He stood up straight, took a deep breath and stood his ground.

"Really? In what ways do you contribute?" he asked inquisitively. "Last I checked I pay the bills, buy the food and allow you to stay here. So do please tell me, how do you contribute?"

Ryoko struggled to think of anything. To be honest she knew perfectly well the vast majority of her time was spent lying about the house drinking sake and eating when the time came. She did some chores around the house when the others pressured her to do so but usually not of her own accord. She had nothing to challenge his claims and she knew it. She was defenseless and had no choice but to relent and remain silent.

"That's what I thought," said Noboyuki with a hint of smugness. "So unless you and Washu care to get jobs and help pay for the bills, the food and everything else that goes into maintaining this house, _my_ house then _you_ will abide by my rules. These people will stay here so long as I deem it appropriate. And that also means treating them with the same amount of courtesy and respect I have shown all of you by allowing you to stay here."

"And what happens when they find out the people living here are a collection of aliens from outer space and that one of them can even fly?" said a voice from behind.

Noboyuki turned to see Washu standing there, her arms crossed with the unmistakable look of disapproval and concern running across her face. Sasami and Mihoshi had also expressed their concerns as well with Sasami being very much against the decision citing the same concerns as Washu. Noboyuki was not blind to the fact the amount of risk that was involved by letting outsiders stay here but then again what choice did he have? The Juraians weren't exactly throwing any money his way nor was his Galaxy Police pension or current salary making a huge dent in the bills either.

"Well in the event that happens I was hoping you could…just maybe…wipe their memories?" he said before giving a nervous laugh while scratching his head.

Washu wasn't laughing. She was very much against this idea of renting out the guest house to outsiders because if the regular people on this planet ever discovered their secret it would be a complete disaster with the social impact on the planet itself being enormous. She understood the reasoning behind his decision but trivial things such as money meant nothing to her. However she still acknowledged the fact she hadn't had to worry about money since she was a student at the Galaxy Academy and even then the Jurai Empire had fronted the bill. Now she could create almost anything she wanted at a mere whim but once again she understood it was simply cause and effect. She and the others were the cause of Noboyuki's economic woes and this was the effect. She could just make the money appear in his bank accounts but she knew how insulting that could be, especially to a man who worked so hard to provide for her and everyone else under this one roof.

"Fine, it's your house. If the situation calls for it then I will erase their memories. However if that does end up being the result of your decision to have outsiders here you will never ask me to do this again. Is that understood?"

Noboyuki recognized the firmness in her voice and nodded, "I understand."

"You're taking his side on this!?" shouted Ryoko.

Washu turned sharply towards Ryoko. "I'm not taking anyone's side. If you don't like Noboyuki's decision then get a job and help bring in some money. Otherwise deal with it, I have better things to do. In the meantime however we all need to watch how we conduct ourselves while these people are here, especially you. That means no flying, no going through walls and no energy blasts. That also means watching your temper."

"And what about you?" replied Ryoko, attempting to turn the tables and criticize Washu for her lack of oversight of her own activities."I don't see you bringing in any money either. And what's going to happen when they see you disappear into the hall closet for days at a time?"

"Probably because I'm the one who usually cleans up all your messes. Or have you forgotten the last time when you blew up half the house? You let me worry about the situation with the closet, I'll take care of it. Just be sure to tell the others what I said."

And with that the final word had been said. Washu disappeared back into her lab to emerge again no one knew while Ryoko stormed off still simmering from the recent and heated engagement. Noboyuki went to go find Sasami and Mihoshi to relay to them Washu's instructions along with his own in regards of the behavior he expected out of them while the newcomers were staying on the property. He was very insistent they also made no use of powers, alien technology or make any mention of Jurai, the Galaxy Police or any other non-Earth entity. Their cover was to simply be like everyone else, to blend in and not attract any unwanted attention. At most he hoped it would be no more than a few weeks like Dantès had said it would be. He expressed that he simply wanted to remain close to his friend Nicolai while he recovered from his injuries and until his own personal business had been completed. Noboyuki hoped by then to have enough money together to get ahead of the bills until his firm's new architecture contract had been completed. After that he would be out of the red and everything would be back to normal. He had no idea how wrong he would end up being.

* * *

Durante and Nicolai could just see the house coming up ahead of them from the back of the taxi as it kicked up dust from the dirt road. To be honest he was somewhat impressed by the size of the structure which seemed to be approximately three stories tall complete with white walls and a blue roof that seemed to mirror the sky above it. It sat on the shore of a splendid lake complete with wood decking and was surrounded by a sea of vibrant green trees and hills. A paradise in the country to be sure. Durante could see the beaming look on his comrade's face which was a vastly improved and more welcomed result then what it had been at the hospital a day before. Though Nicolai had not completely recovered from his injuries Durante knew that staying in the hospital any longer than he had already was unbearable for him and Durante had checked him out as soon as possible despite the protests of the medical staff whom he promptly ignored. He knew this man far better than any nurse of doctor could ever hope to. He had fought and bled with him through four hellish years of war and knew what he could take. A few broken ribs and some other minor injuries would not slow him down despite his age. All Durante needed to do was to restrict Nicolai's activities and ice the area of broken ribs regularly while administering medication and he'd heal up in another few weeks. He was by no means a doctor but he had been around wounded men long enough he knew how to treat most injuries besides ones that required advanced surgery. Getting Nicolai out of that hospital and back into the outside world was the best medicine he could possibly have.

The taxi pulled up to the house and Durante helped Nicolai out of the car. The old man had refused a wheel chair upon leaving the hospital but Durante had convinced him or rather forced him to take a cane to help him walk for the time being. If anything he was as stubborn as Durante was and seemingly refused to accept his age or the fact he was much more prone to injuries. Regardless however of how old his body was his spirit was still as strong as it had ever been. That refusal to submit to one's fate and continue to push ever forward was a trait Durante greatly admired in people and in return gave him the strength to continue on with his life despite the fact he secretly longed for that life to end. If there was one thing that had kept him going for so long it was the camaraderie he found among men in war; an unbreakable bond that existed only in combat that outsiders would never comprehend nor understand. That is why the men who stood by Durante in these times would always be counted amongst him as brothers and he would never abandon them in their time of need. Durante retrieved the bags from the car and paid the driver before making his way to the front door of the house.

From inside Ryoko could hear the commotion coming from outside. Mustering the energy to pick herself up off the couch, she lazily made her way to the door and opened it to reveal the two men standing there. One was young while the other behind him was much older, at least for an Earthling anyway and he was as anyone might picture an older man to look like. The younger man was taller than she was though not by much, about six feet. She could immediately tell neither one was Japanese but what Tenchi had referred to such people before as being Westerners. He had an athletic figure with black hair but was unkempt in appearance and was in dire need of a shave and a haircut not to mention a bath judging from the smell. Over his shoulder he had an olive drab duffel bag which had apparently seen many miles of travel given the amount of wear it had while he carried the older man's bags in his hands. Perhaps his most striking feature was his eyes which were a grayish silver color; their gaze piercing right through her.

"May we come in?" asked Durante.

"That depends on who's asking," replied Ryoko with an aggressive tone as she crossed her arms. " _Who_ are you exactly?"

"This is Edmond Dantès and his friend Nicolai, they are the renters and more importantly my guests," Noboyuki said from behind as he brushed passed Ryoko.

"Glad you could both make it Mr. Dantès," said Noboyuki as he shook Durante's hand. "Please come in."

"You can call me Dantès, just leave out the title," replied Durante as he shook back.

"Very well, Dantès then."

Noboyuki felt a bit put off by the man's directness as it felt more like he had just dictated an order or demand rather than a request. Still he could deal with such rudeness for a while at least. The man had agreed to pay Noboyuki's price per week for the rooms which was double then what he had originally planned. In fact he had even paid in advance which was fine with Noboyuki who would promptly use it to pay off some of his bills. The older man was far more polite even though he did not speak Japanese nor understand local customs as he entered the house with his shoes on. Durante was quick to remedy the situation and explained to him in his own language what he was doing wrong and showed him where to properly place his shoes upon entering the house. After doing so he shuffled his way in following Durante as they were led on by Noboyuki of a tour through the rest of the house. Ryoko trailed behind driven only be a sense of curiosity, it wasn't often she got the opportunity to meet outsiders let alone live with them. That and she simply didn't trust them.

Noboyuki showed the guests the living areas upstairs including the bathrooms and other bedrooms which were off limits to them for privacy reasons before making their way back down the stairs the opposite side of the house and onto the deck outside. The view over the lake was quite spectacular as the sunlight glittered, glinted and danced across the surface towards the green trees and hills that lay beyond. While the others admired the view Nicolai took this opportunity to make his way over to one of the many lounge chairs he spotted lining the decking. Leaning on his cane for support he slowly sat down, settled in and laid back into the chair to relax and enjoy the warmth of the sun as the long trip from the hospital and the recent climbing up and down of stairs had zapped the old man of his energy. Resting the cane on the ground next to him he then laced his hands together over his chest before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, a look of serenity running across his face. Noboyuki smiled at this as he was glad to see that the man could so easily make himself at home. In a way he was envious as well. Even though he didn't look it Noboyuki was almost eighty years old, though under his disguise he looked to still be in his early thirties as his Juraian heritage and body enhancements from the Galaxy Police had vastly increased his lifespan. He was envious because even though this older man was getting near the end of his life he looked content and seemed to not have a care in the world. He had lived his life and was now enjoying a much deserved retirement, something Noboyuki could never really do on Earth. It was something none of the girls could do either as their long life spans simply made it impossible to remain here without drawing attention, owed to the fact they simply didn't age at the rate regular humans did. Some inquisitive people, usually distant relatives of the people living in Masaki Village (who all knew the truth of Noboyuki and his many female guests as they themselves were offworlders or had relations off world) had actually began to question why Washu did not seem to age. Noboyuki had informed Washu of this and actually pleaded with her to take on a more adult form, at least when leaving the house anyway. She had agreed on the condition he assisted her with one of her experiments later on, mentioning something about scanning his genetic code and comparing it to Tenchi's. The experience kept him up for days afterward.

Durante insisted they leave Nicolai to his own piece of of heaven and continue on with the tour, seemingly anxious to get it over with. They made their way back inside and Noboyuki showed Durante the living room and the dining area. As he was doing this Durante caught sight of the closet door off to his left. There was something familiar about it. He recognized it from somewhere, but could not recall from when or where. Curious, he walked over to the door with an outstretched hand while a look of panic ran across Noboyuki's face. Washu had said she'd take care of the closet, but if Durante discovered the inter-dimensional laboratory on the other side of the door they were in real trouble.

Durante looked at the door more closely, studying it. It seemed normal being made of wood even though the overall design was somewhat odd. When he saw the large circular window adorned on it however it suddenly dawned on him. He had seen this very door in his dreams a few times before, but always it had opened to nothingness; an empty void of black. Cautiously he opened the door all the way to reveal nothing more than an empty closet with some bare shelves. He let out a slight sigh, in his mind cursing himself for letting a dream get to him. Of course it was just a closet, what did he expect? He closed it and turned back to see the look on Noboyuki's and Ryoko's faces. They were obviously nervous about something as they were perspiring; their eyes had widened and their pupils were enlarged.

"Is something wrong?" Durante asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh no, it's nothing! Nothing is wrong," replied Noboyuki as he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, wiping away the sweat from his brow. "It's just a little hot in here. Why don't we continue the tour?"

Durante narrowed his eyes at Noboyuki. He was no fool and could these people were obviously hiding something but whether or not that really mattered to him however remained to be seen. As long as it did not get in the way of his affairs he could care less about whatever it was they were trying to hide. Leaving the closet behind they made their way into the kitchen where Sasami was busy cooking lunch. She hummed happily as she tended to the frying pan in front of her, stirring the meat and vegetables so they cooked evenly before she turned her attention back to the rice, lowering the temperature of the stove so it didn't burn and stick to the pot. She soon heard the footsteps of the others as they came into the kitchen and turned to greet them.

"Lunch will be ready soon so please be patient…" she stopped short, the smile fading from her face as she saw Durante. She had heard the commotion from earlier but had simply tuned it out as she did with everything else when she was cooking. The fact was she was simply not happy with the idea that strangers would be staying in the house, her house. Her home. It was the only place that she had ever truly felt happy without all the constant reminders of who she really was and all the responsibilities that go with being a princess of Jurai. Here she was just another regular person with a family, friends and the only worries she had were no different than anyone else. This man and his friend were an intrusion; treading on her happiness. She would abide them for now as was requested of her but that didn't mean she had to like it. As Jurai royalty she was used to putting on a mask for the rest of the world in order to appear polite, dignified and everything else that went with being a princess. Now was the time to don her mask.

"Sasami you remember Mr. Dantès…I mean Dantès," said Noboyuki as he gestured to Durante with his hand.

"Yes I remember. Welcome to our home," replied Sasami with a smile before she politely bowed.

Durante said nothing in return, only giving a slight bow in acknowledgment of her manners. The scent of the cooking food however had caught his attention. He had not eaten anything in over a day and the smell of home cooked mean was a luxury he had not experienced in some time. In the field the majority of his food was prepackaged, ready to eat meals or anything he was lucky enough to come across whether it was captured food or an animal he had hunted on his own. Embarrassingly his stomach seemed to agree with him as it began to growl.

"Seems like someone is hungry," said Ryoko in response to the guttural noise. "I'm not surprised though. Anyone who gets a whiff of Sasami's cooking simply can't help it."

"My apologies," replied Durante as he placed his hand over his stomach in order to quell the noise. "I haven't really eaten anything since I arrived in this country."

"Don't worry, lunch will soon be ready. In the meantime let me show you where you'll be staying." Noboyuki led the group out of the kitchen and back outside.

The guest house of which he spoke of earlier was actually a converted storage shack that was originally used to house dry goods. After a time however the ever increasing number of guests visiting from outer space forced Noboyuki to expand the number of available lodging accommodations. He had done the redesign himself and with help of Washu had quickly finished it; she built it in five minutes. As for the dry goods they were moved into the new, smaller storage area that was added on to the kitchen. The guest house was rather simple having only the bare necessities; a pair of beds to sleep in as well as a closet, a mini fridge, a couple of dressers and night stands with a lamp and single window looking outside. It also had its own bathroom complete with a shower which Durante was looking forward to using. Along with not really eating anything for over a day he also had not bathed; smelling like a fish was not something these people appreciated in the slightest. He thanked Noboyuki for the tour of the house and walked over to one of the beds, tossing his duffel bag on top of it while putting Nicolai's belongings on the other. Noboyuki left him to unpack and settle in to his new surroundings, Ryoko however stuck around to inquire more about their new guests and to assess whether or not they represented a threat. She rather doubted it seeing as how humans on this planet were quite frail beings compared to what was out in the rest of the galaxy. A typical Galaxy Police officer equipped with nano-machines which resulted in greatly increased strength and speed barely registered on the radar to someone like Ryoko. Even the typical Juraian soldier would be hard pressed to take her on. So far only members of the Jurai Royal Family had been able to best her in combat and they were amongst the most powerful beings in the galaxy. She could more than handle a couple of Earthlings with little effort if they tried anything during their stay.

"So…" Ryoko started. "Dantès is it? Or was it Edmond?"

"Like I said before, just Dantès is fine," replied Durante as he began to unpack.

The girl was tall and quite young, barely out of her late teens. Durante noticed this one also had rather oddly colored hair but gave it little thought as he still remembered the other girl's hair color as well. Her eyes were a bewitching amber color, something even Durante had seldom seen in his lifetime. He thought perhaps they were just colored contact lenses, an addition to go with her hair. It was just a style of the times he guessed, nothing really worthy of note. He could see she was the aggressive type as well and obviously felt threatened by his presence here as he could feel the tension that existed between them but she wasn't the only one. He could sense the atmosphere in the house overall and sense that he and Nicolai were trespassers here. This was fine with him however as it simply meant the others would more than likely give him his space. The less contact they had and the less they knew about him the better.

"So where are you from exactly?" Ryoko inquired.

"Lots of different places," replied Durante in an attempt to purposely be vague about the subject, just like with Mihoshi in the taxi the day before.

"What kind of answer is that? You have to be from somewhere." She folded her arms, frustrated at Durante's response.

"My work keeps me moving from one place to another so I don't have a permanent home," he replied as he began sorting articles of clothing into separate piles on the bed.

"What kind of work?"

"My business is my own and I prefer to keep it that way so just drop it."

"Jeez _sorry_. Kinda touchy about it are we?" replied Ryoko, put off by the sudden remark.

Durante dismissed her comment, making his way over to one of the dressers and began putting away his clothes and other effects. He hadn't known this girl long but he was fairly sure he already did not like her. At this point he just wanted her to leave so he could attend to the task before him.

"I'm Ryoko by the way. Do you _care_ about that at all?" She was beginning to get annoyed by his allusiveness to her questions which made him even more suspect to speculation.

Durante sighed heavily, stopped what he was doing and shot a glare over at Ryoko before walking over to her and getting right up into her face. She backed away, making a space between them.

"As of right now, no I don't care," he replied assertively. He was very tired from the last few days of travel and the hospital had not made it any more enjoyable. He was far from being friendly at the moment and certainly not in the mood to answer a million questions.

"I also don't like some nosy girl getting into my business the second I arrive. Let's be clear about something, I don't like being here any longer than I have to be just as you don't like having me here in general. I am staying here because it is advantageous to me; I am not here to be your friend or get to known you. Once that old man has recovered and my business in this country is finished I'll be on my way and you'll never have to see me again. So in the meantime just stay out of my way. Understood?"

And with that Durante asked her to leave before shutting the door in her face, locking it from the other side. It was not the most subtle way to handle the situation but he had finally gotten rid of her. Ryoko stood at the door looking stunned, still processing what had just happened. She had never before encountered anybody on this planet before that was so direct and so rude. In fact she had never encountered anyone like that before period. She would never admit it outright but the way this man had treated her made her feel small as well as just plain angry. Ryoko may give off the outward appearance of being tough deep down she was a sensitive soul and was prone to being easily offended. She still remembered when Ayeka had called her a mummy to poke fun of her age. Ryoko's knuckles turned white as she clenched her fists, every fiber of her being screaming for her to rip the door off the hinges and giving this man a piece of her mind. She then slowly exhaled and eventually relaxed herself, gaining control of her temper. Gone were the days of when she was set off by even the slightest little thing. She had matured since then, mostly with the help of Noike who had taught her breathing and stress exercises to help control her temper. She sucked it up, let it go and went back into the house to wait for lunch to be served.

Durante finished unpacking Nicolai's and his own things until he came to the black box which contained his forged documents as well the handgun he had received earlier the day before. Making sure he was alone first and closing the shades over the window, he then dumped the contents of the box out onto the bed. Sorting through it he found and loaded up the two pistol magazines with ammunition before putting one into the magazine well of the pistol and racking the slide, chambering a round. He then dropped the magazine out of the weapon and topped it off before reinserting it again back into the weapon insuring the maximum capacity possible. Taking the papers he needed which included a fake passport and domestic driver's license, he then put all the cash he had into the black box with the handgun and hid it under the mattress until a more suitable location could be found to store it. For now he simply wanted to be prepared before he made his way into the bathroom to take a shower which he both badly needed and wanted. He removed his foul smelling clothes and stepped into the hot shower, using his arms he braced himself against the tiled walled in front of him and let the hot water wash over him as the dirt and grime from his time aboard the ship was washed away.

His body was muscular and toned but tainted by the many scars he bore from battle. Most wounds he had received healed up completely leaving behind no evidence that they had ever been there but the most severe and grievous of ones had left their mark. These were the only scars that were visible to others however, the unseen ones being seared into his mind for the rest of his days. After so many years of fighting he had grown used to the constant nightmares that haunted most men who have seen war but they still got to him once in a while. He slept little, only taking as much rest as needed and did anything to keep himself busy to avoid thinking about the bad memories. There were plenty of good ones as well. He had made many friends and comrades over the millennia and their memory always stayed with him but whether they died in war or through natural causes Durante still had to taste the bitterness of his own immortality. Taking a wife was something he decided against as well very early in his life. Watching the one you care about most slowly being worn away by time was a cruel fate he chose to spare himself and others as they saw him never age. There had been plenty of women over the years to be sure but he had never really found that special one he wanted to make his own. Smoking and a love of drink had been his main method of treatment for years but after struggling with it for so long he was beginning to break down. He simply could not cope with it anymore and longed for it end.

There was nothing to fight for anymore and he long since given up on obtaining what he considered a beautiful death; to die in battle. He had lived long enough to lose everything he ever cared about or loved and hence he found little purpose in life anymore. Nicolai was one of the last links to this pisshole of a world worth sticking around for but death was knocking at his door. Soon he would be gone as well once the lung cancer had claimed him. It was while onboard the ship he had taken to Japan that Durante had made his decision. After he had dealt with Muller he would end it and achieve the way out he so desperately sought. He would finally set himself free; his spirit bound to whatever fate awaited him whether it be Hell or simple nothingness. For some this world was simply never going to be right and the only way to make it so was to leave it. Durante would soon discover however that fate had other plans and he would find a new meaning to his life that he could have never possibly imagined.


	3. Chapter II- First Impressions

Durante finished showering but did not bother to shave or address the mess that was his hair which had become long and stringy over the last few months of being in the field. His mind was focused more on getting something to eat rather than grooming himself. As he dried off and put on some fresh clothes his thoughts wandered back to the decision he made earlier on the ship during the crossing from the Asian mainland. How had he come to this point? When had he fallen so far that he could longer bear the burdens he had always carried? To be honest he was just tired. Not just tired physically but mentally as well; his very soul drained of life. He knew where it had all started; roughly a little over 1500 years ago when Rome was sacked by the Visigoths under Alaric in 410 AD. It was one of the most painful moments in his life and he eventually repaid the man in kind for his trespass by slaughtering him and his entire bloodline, wiping it from the face of the Earth.

By that time the Western Roman Empire was in its death throes having succumbed to repeated barbarian invasions, corruption, infighting and other reasons for the modern day historians and philosophers to debate and wonder. In 476 AD it was all over, the light of his world had been extinguished and the order that the empire had brought to the west for over a thousand years was gone. The Germanic usurper Odoacer had taken Rome, proclaiming himself King of Italy when he deposed the last Roman emperor. After taking power Durante and many others declared public enemies were crucified, being left to die of exhaustion, exposure and asphyxiation. It ended with Durante tearing himself off the cross, tracking Odoacer down and running a sword through him while he ate his evening meal.

The man's last words had been "Where is God?" to which Durante had replied, "I killed him along with you." He had once been a pagan but later converted to Christianity when the empire adopted it as its primary religion. That day Durante achieved his revenge he also disowned religion. There were no gods, goddesses or even a singular god. There was only the world and the cruelty it held. A man had to decide his own destiny and steer it in the direction he desired whether it be his own life or the country he loved. Never again would Durante allow himself to be so powerless.

After Rome fell and his revenge complete Durante became a mere shell of a man. A burnt out, desolate man. A man, haunted by the demons of his past who wandered out into the darkness of the world and it was there in that blighted place he had learned to live again. As a mercenary, a sword for hire, whatever you wanted to call it. If there was money to be made and a war to be fought he was there. A few times over the centuries he had tried to start over with a clean slate. He had had a hand in creating a new nation once in a while or becoming a citizen of another, trying to find order, a balance to his life but always he was called back to going his own way and only thing he really knew. The battlefield. Nothing would ever replace the country he had lost or emulate its past splendor. For him life was now meaningless. All he had left was the next battle of the next war and even that was no longer enough. He knew now he would never find the peace he sought and just wanted it to end. That would be his peace, an eternal peace.

Durante cleared his mind of such things, it would come soon enough. For now it was to simply get some food and then back to his mission. Gathering intelligence on his target through his network of contacts within the country and elsewhere would be easy enough, he was owed a few favors by people in high places. Alternative payment to jobs he had done in the past. Getting the weapons and equipment he needed was another matter however. They were on the way to be sure but acquiring and then hiding them until they were actually needed them was an immediate problem to address. He could ill afford for them to be discovered so when he got the chance he would scout out the surrounding area for a good spot to hide them away from prying eyes. As he sat on the bed and began putting on his boots he heard a knock at the door. Annoyed he called out for them to enter expecting to see Ryoko again but instead it was Sasami who opened the door. She seemed nervous as well as flustered as she stood before him. Durante guessed his little spat with Ryoko had reached the ears of the others in the house and apparently had unsurprisingly had not gone over very well. Her face was unfriendly as she glared at him with her pink eyes and he could see the fire behind them but there was also restraint. She opened her mouth to say some something but then stopped short. Then after taking a breath she attempted to speak again.

"Lunch is ready if you want it," she said simply before turning around and heading back towards the door.

"That's not what you wanted to say," said Durante as he finished tying the laces on his boots.

"Excuse me?" Sasami turned back to face him.

"I said that's not what you came here to say." Durante stood up from the bed, pulling his shirt down to straighten it out. "Speak your mind girl, there's no need to be polite."

She hesitated at first, seemingly working up her courage before she responded. "Why did you say such mean things to Ryoko?" she demanded. "She was just trying to get to know you."

"You don't want to know me," Durante replied coldly. He took the pack of cigarettes and lighter from the night stand and put them in his pocket. "And I don't want to know you either."

Sasami was hurt by his words but stood steadfast, adamant she have her say. "You may not want to know us but we have a _right_ to know who you are at least. You're a stranger here and this is our home which we have opened up to you despite my own objections along with the others and I don't appreciate your rudeness either. When we go inside to eat I ask that you apologize to Ryoko for what you said to her. You owe her that."

Durante was surprised. He wasn't expecting this one to have a backbone let alone be so forward, a quality he appreciated. He hated when people beat around the bush, preferring them to get directly to the point. He thought about it for a moment and decided that it was better for his own sake and especially Nicolai's to try and play nice no matter how much he didn't care too. Gaining their trust was a far better strategy than alienating himself which might only draw more unwanted attention to him and his activities.

"Ok kid," Durante replied before he smiled at her. "You win, lead the way."

Sasami smiled back and lead him into the house and to the dining area where the others were waiting. She showed him to the table and he took a seat right across from where Ryoko was sitting who was glaring at him as soon as he entered the room. She understandably was still upset over what had occurred between them earlier but said nothing as she continued to drink her saké. Durante didn't know what to say either and his character would not allow him to outright apologize to her. His view was a man should stand by what he says and never have to back track or apologize for it. Simply put to him it was a sign of weakness. However watching her drink gave him an idea that would be seen as making an effort at least. He got up from the table and went back to the guesthouse, returning later with a bottle in his hand. It was something he always carried with him when possible and was his drink of choice.

Durante sat down next to Ryoko who was still refusing to even acknowledge him. He said nothing, only opening the bottle and allowing it air out a bit as the smell of pure aged Tennessee whiskey began filling the room. He grabbed two of the glasses in front of him and poured the amber colored spirit into them in equal measure before passing one over to Ryoko. She looked puzzled, not understanding fully the sudden change in the man's demeanor. Curious, she picked up the glass and smelled the liquid it contained as it stung her nostrils. She had never smelled anything quite like it before and it certainly smelled stronger than the drink she usually partook of. She watched as Durante effortlessly threw back the glass and swallowed the entire portion before setting it down and poured himself another. She followed suit and immediately regretted it, violently coughing as is it burned all the way down her throat.

"What the heck is this stuff?" exclaimed Ryoko before she took a drink of her saké, using it as a chaser to quell the burning sensation.

"That…" he answered as he refilled her glass, "is genuine and proper American whiskey from the great state of Tennessee."

Ryoko had no real idea what he was talking about in terms of the exact origins of the alcohol she was drinking. She knew there were other nations beyond the borders of Japan but the idea of so many other nations on a single planet was still a strange concept to her and the others. In the rest of galaxy nations were made up of hundreds if not thousands of planets in multiple star systems. She had heard of America through the pop culture in the country she had come to be familiar with but overall didn't really care where the booze was from. All she knew was it burned as she drank it but it got her buzz going a lot sooner than her sake could ever hope to. The man was a complete jerk as far she was concerned but he had good taste at least and she understood what he was trying to do. It was not an outright apology but it was good enough as far as she was concerned and free booze was always a plus in her book. She also knew Sasami was really the one to thank for Dantès sudden change, the girl had a talent for being able to get a handle on people no matter how difficult they were.

As they continued to drink a small, furry creature came running in from outside zipping past Ryoko and Durante and into the kitchen. Curiously it stopped and seemed to backtrack to Durante, looking at him as if it were studying him. Durante was unsure of what he was looking at as he had never seen such an animal before. It seemed to be a cross between a rabbit and a cat as it certainly meowed like one and stared at him with piercing yellow eyes. A strange, red jewel was emblazoned on its forehead which baffled Durante. What exactly was this strange creature? He reached out to it with his hand but it backed away cautiously as many animals do when confronted by a stranger. Eventually it warmed up to him and allowed him to pet it on the head and scratch it behind the ears which it seemed to enjoy very much.

"And who is this?" asked Durante as the strange creature mewed happily as he continued to pet her. He had to admit it seemed to fit the definition of the word cute.

"Her name is Ryo-Ohki," answered Sasami as she came in from the kitchen with the food and began to serve it.

The mystery of the creature immediately took a back seat to the smell of a fresh, hot meal which had Durante virtually salivating at the mouth. During the crossing from the Asian mainland he had eaten nothing but military rations that he carried with him or whatever the ship had to offer which was nothing spectacular. He picked up the chopsticks sitting next to his dish and without a second thought expertly began using them to devour the food in front of him as the others came into the dining area to join them. By the time they had seated themselves Durante was already on to his second helping and continuing his onslaught. Ryoko and the others looked on in wonder, both amazed and somewhat disgusted at the same time as they watched him scarf down his food. Durante could feel their eyes watching him and looked up to see the expressions of disgust on the faces of the people around him which was less than flattering to say the least. Embarrassed, he righted himself and wiped his mouth clean with a napkin. Spending so much time in the field one tended to forgo any and all manners as you never knew when your next meal would be. You had to eat when you could and do so quickly lest you be caught off guard. The same rules applied to sleep as well. A few hours here and a few hours there could be the difference between life and death but you still did so with one eye open, ready at a moment's notice to spring into action.

"Pardon me, it's been some time since I've had such a well prepared meal." Durante could tell that his onlookers were put off by his bad manners as he used a napkin to wipe away the pieces of rice stuck to his mouth.

"Don't worry about it. It's the best complement our young chef could ever receive," replied Noboyuki before he began eating his own food.

"You should learn to slow down and enjoy it, there's plenty to go around," said Sasami as she reached across the table to begin serving herself.

"That can be difficult in my profession." Durante closed his eyes and sighed, realizing he had already said too much.

"What is it that you do exactly?" asked Noboyuki.

"Don't bother asking. He doesn't like nosy people getting into his business," said Ryoko who was unable to resist throwing in a snide remark. She was still angry at Durante for the way he had treated her earlier despite his earlier peace offering.

There was no getting away from it; their interest was now peaked and Durante knew it would stay that way until he gave them something. It was best to simply answer whatever questions they had and get it over with. He would not be so foolish as to tell them everything, just enough information to satisfy their curiosity while remaining as cryptic as possible.

"If you must know I'm a contractor," replied Durante as he continued to eat his meal albeit now at a slower and more civilized manner.

"Oh really? What kind of contractor?" asked Mihoshi. "Is it construction? Or maybe…"

"Hey bubble head try being quiet and maybe he'll tell you!" barked Ryoko.

"That's alright Ryoko," Durante interjected. "I'm a military contractor."

"Military? You certainly don't look like a military man," replied Noboyuki. Durante was a far cry to the military types he had met before. The were always clean cut and well disciplined while Durante seemed to be the exact opposite with his unkempt look and apparent lack of manners.

"I said I was a contractor, not actually in the military," rebuffed Durante who was annoyed at having to repeat himself.

"What kind of military contracting exactly?" asked Ryoko. "And for who?"

"Just training, an advisory role," replied Durante, telling only a half truth. "And for anyone willing to pay for my services."

"So you're a mercenary then." Ryoko had no love for such people, those who worked for only money regardless of where it came from. They had no honor or loyalty as far as she was concerned and had personally dealt with them more than once while she was still a space pirate even though the majority of the time she was under Kagato's control.

"Like I said, a military contractor," answered Durante, brushing off her comment. He didn't care if she approved or not, Durante was not out to impress anyone with his chosen profession.

"So what's your relationship with Nicolai anyway?" asked Noboyuki, looking to change the subject. "Is he your father?"

"No. No blood relation, just an old friend," said Durante as he finished what remained of his meal. "I'm just here to see he recovers."

"He's certainly old," commented Ryoko before giving a chuckle.

"Ryoko…" said Sasami, reminding her of her manners.

"Ok, ok I was just kidding." Ryoko returned to drinking her alcohol, preferring the taste of saké to the sound of conversation.

"I bet he has some stories to tell," said Sasami who seemed genuinely interested in hearing them.

"You might find that a bit difficult seeing as how he only speaks Russian," replied Durante. "So unless you're fluent in the language I don't see story time happening anytime soon."

"Oh that's not a problem!" interjected Mihoshi. "With our implants we can underta…" she started to say before having her mouth covered up by Noboyuki.

"What was that?" asked Durante, unsure of what she had just said.

"Nothing, it was nothing! She has such a vivid imagination, too much late night television. I think what she meant to say was perhaps if you were willing you could translate for us if he ever did tell a story." Noboyuki loved Mihoshi like his own daughter but her mouth had a way of running wild without thinking. If this was going to work he had to convince her to keep her mouth shut.

"Perhaps…" said Durante as he rose up from the table, grabbing his dishes and making his way to the kitchen. Sasami tried to intercede; she protested and insisted that he leave the dishes for her to take care of. He assured her it was no trouble and cleaned off his own dishes, putting them on the rack beside the sink to allow them to dry. He then returned to the table with another plate, loading up more food.

"I thought you were done?" asked Sasami.

"It's not for me, but for Nicolai. By the way, that bottle of whiskey is yours if you want it Ryoko. Consider it a gift, from me to you." Durante then proceeded to make his way outside with the hot plate of food in his hands.

Ryoko's eyes lit up, not quite believing what he just said before grabbing the bottle and cradling it in her arms.

"Well thank you! Hell you're not such a bad guy after all, stay as long as you want!" Ryoko started pouring herself another glass, happily humming a tune as she filled it to the brim.

Outside on the the deck Durante made his way over to where Nicolai was resting. He looked down at him before deciding to ruin the moment by kicking the lounger he was laying in.

"Get your ass up old man, time for some chow!" yelled Durante, startling Nicolai with his rude awakening.

"You shouldn't do that!" Nicolai yelled back as he sat up. "I could have killed you!"

"Maybe 50 years ago old timer," replied Durante, continuing to tease his friend. "The only thing you're going to kill now is this plate of food so eat up."

"I'll show you who's an old timer…" grumbled Nicolai before taking the plate and starting to eat. He wasn't very good at using chop sticks yet so he used them like a farmer would a hoe, sliding the food towards the edge of the plate and towards his mouth. As he ate Durante pulled out his pack of cigarettes from his pocket and lit one up, breathing the smoke in deep. Nicolai gestured that he wanted one but Durante denied it to him, reminding him of his medical condition.

"Don't tell me what I can and can't do Durante. I'll have you know I stormed the Reichstag in Berlin." Nicolai hated being so old and frail as people tended to treat him like a child but in the end he knew he was about as helpless as one. It was something he struggled to accept given his life experience but he had know choice but to acknowledge his younger days were long gone.

"I know that. I was there with you, remember? Damn old fool." Durante took out another cigarette and lit it by touching it to the cherry end of his own. He passed it off to Nicolai who greedily took it in his hand and straight to his mouth. He breathed in deep before his whole body began to instantly relax, reacting to the nicotine. Durante knew it was only killing him faster but who was he to stop him? It was his life so he let him do whatever he wanted. After they had finished their cigarettes and Nicolai his meal Durante saw him back inside and to the guest house, helping him into bed and treating his injuries before making his way back outside to scout the area for a spot to hide his cache. There was also good chance word had reached Muller that Durante was in the country and no doubt was looking for him as well. He was keen to learn the geography of the surrounding terrain as well in terms of defensible areas and set out alone down the dirt road.

As he walked down the dirt trail scanning the land Durante admired the view before him. It was very lush and vibrant, with many trees and bushes surrounding the area cloaked in foliage. The summer was coming to an end and though it was still warm a few of the trees were just starting to change color; subtle hints of yellow, brown, red and orange could be seen if one really stopped and looked. The wind was starting to kick up and the tops of the trees were swaying while a warm breeze washing over Durante's face. He closed his eyes and savored the sensation, the warmth of the breeze helping him to unwind and relax. As he did so he began to hear what sounded like a woman's voice carrying across the wind. It wasn't singing but a gentle humming of a tune Durante did not recognize. Immortals had more heightened senses compared to regular humans and thus there sight, smell, touch and hearing was far more sensitive, making them more effective in battle and even just typical everyday life. He could often hear a conversation taking place in another room and it was no different if they were standing right next to him while he was eavesdropping. Curious, he temporarily abandoned his current task to investigate the source of the noise which led him to a nearby grove where he discovered a large tree that dominated the area and appeared to be quite old.

Its canopy stretched up far as well as wide, covering the body of water it was rooted in. No doubt artificial and put in place for the tree itself to have an ample supply of fresh water. Leading up to it were a series of stones which formed a crude path leading up to the base of the tree. Going around the entire diameter of the trunk was a large rope which seemed to hold in place some sort of seal; a religious significance most likely. He looked around as he did not see any indication of the source of the humming let alone a woman. Durante was quite fatigued from his journey and began to wonder if his lack of sleep was making his mind play tricks on him. As he was about to turn and leave he heard a sudden splash in the water by the tree and stopped to see who or what it was. Out from behind the tree a woman suddenly appeared, trudging through the water and seemed to be studying or inspecting the tree as she continued humming her happy melody. She was wearing a pair of green shorts, the typical kind you would find any young woman these days to be wearing in warm weather and a matching green tank top. She looked to be in her late twenties or early thirties, was attractive, slim bodied and of fair skin with a height almost equaling his own. By far her most striking feature was her long, flowing crimson red hair complimented by a royal purple hair band made of a cloth material that kept her wild mane tame and in order. As of yet he could not see her face but as she clambered up out of the water and onto the one dry spot of land that lay directly in front of the tree Durante began to walk towards her.

His mind began to race back to the memories of the dreams he had about the woman with red hair. Could it be? Was this even real or had he let himself go crazy? Did she really exist and was this the culmination of some sort of millennia long prophecy or vision or was it wishful thinking? Cautiously he began to slowly walk across the stone path that led up to the tree as he continued to study and admire the woman in front of him. He had gotten about halfway across the path before the silence was broken by the sound of a stick snapping underneath his feet. Startled, the woman turned around to see what it was that had intruded on her domain and it was there their gazes met, their eyes locking together. Durante looked upon her face and soon lost himself in the pair of deep, emerald green eyes that went with it. The doubt in his mind had vanished as the answer he sought was laid bare. It really was her. Lost in the moment and without thinking he opened his mouth and uttered a single word in his native tongue, "Pulcher." Translated from Latin it means simply one thing; beautiful.

* * *

Washu sweated and her muscles strained as she trudged through the water surrounding the Royal Tree Funaho, humming the tune of a song from long ago while performing various tests and evaluations on the sentient perennial plant's condition to assure it was in good health. It was nothing more than a routine checkup she performed every few months as a courtesy to Katsuhito or rather Prince Yosho, plus it was the least she could do for being allowed to stay at the Masaki residence. That and she was literally the only one on the entire face of the planet that could do the job anyway. The tree itself formed a symbiotic relationship with Katsuhito and the partnership was for life. It physically sustained him as well and was the reason for his long lasting youth which he hid under the guise of an old man to protect his true identity. At one point the tree was the heart and brain of a Juraian space ship that was grown around the tree rather than built but since it had taken root it lost this ability and gradually began to lose its power. The power of Ryoko's gemstones or rather Washu's gemstones; the gemstones of one of the Chousin goddesses had sustained the power of the tree and thus continued to sustain Katsuhito.

Washu had used the gemstones to seal away her godly powers and consciousness and it was there she started her new life as a mortal. The purpose of this was to forget everything she knew as a goddess and relearn everything from scratch to hopefully discover and prove the existence of a higher-level being which was impossible when one supposedly knew everything which in itself was a contradiction. This approach allowed her to think outside the box and eventually it led to Tenchi. During the last 20,000 years she had experienced her fair share of what life had to offer a mortal including love and loss, the good and the bad, pain and joy. After the incident with Z she had regained her powers and her original consciousness, remembering everything. She was however quite content with living her life as a mortal and allowing Tokimi to resume her role as overseer of all creation, at least until she couldn't handle it on her own any longer or needed a vacation. Even the creators of the universe needed some time off once in a while.

Washu was still annoyed however, not only at the fact she had to work outside away from her comfortable and familiar laboratory but also because she was being forced into using her adult form rather than the adolescent one she was so used to. Noboyuki and Katsuhito were getting too many questions from outsiders or business relations as to why she didn't seem to age so now she had to essentially play dress up to quell the curiosity. At least it was only when they had company over at the house or when she went outside to work where she would be visible to anyone passing by. Eventually she would come up with a more permanent solution to the problem such as planting false memories or maybe even installing holographic generators around the property to keep prying eyes from seeing what she didn't want them to see. Such was the life of a group of aliens living on a planet that still debated amongst its scholars as to whether they were truly alone in the universe. The thought always made her chuckle simply from the fact at how ridiculous it seemed to her anyone would question such a thing.

Eventually she finished her evaluation of the Royal Tree and found it to be in perfect health as per usual, nothing out of the ordinary besides a few squirrels and birds nesting in the branches. She started making her way back around to what would be considered the front of the tree facing the stone path whilst trying to avoid splashing water all over herself in the process. As she finally came around to the front and clambered up onto the dry patch of land she heard the snapping of what sounded like a stick or branch from behind her. She immediately turned around to see who or what it was that had made the noise and saw a man standing there with a surprised look on his face but also one of shock as if he had just seen a ghost. For a moment he simply stared at her before uttering a single word in a language she did not recognize nor understand which was very surprising to her as her universal translator implant had rarely if ever encountered a language it could not decipher. The overall appearance of the stranger was rather plain; he wore a pair of tan khaki pants, boots and a white t-shirt. His hygienic appearance was another matter however with his long, stringy hair and a severe five o'clock shadow which did nothing to help his overall appeal. Slowly he began to make his way towards her in a somewhat dazed state to the point Washu started to feel uncomfortable and concerned for her own well-being not that she couldn't handle any threat that came her way, let alone a mere Earthling. The man had only crossed a few of the stones on the path before he suddenly slipped on one of the slick surfaces and went tumbling into the body of water with a huge splash.

Durante was drenched from head to toe, his pride and dignity having just been solidly defeated by a wet slab of stone. He quietly cursed himself for being so careless and letting his guard down during such a moment. Here he was encountering something that he had never expected to encounter, a dream made in the flesh and he managed to somehow screw it up and embarrass himself at the same time. He then began to hear the sound of a female laughing and looked up to see the red haired woman walking over to him. She stood over him before reaching down with her hand, offering to help him up. Now that she was closer Durante got a much better look at her face and was now beyond sure she really was the woman from his dreams and not some hallucination.

"Are you alright?" she asked him as she struggled to contain her amusement. The man looked like completely ridiculous as he sat in the water, reminding Washu of a dog that just received a bath with his long, dripping wet hair and beard.

"Um…I…uh..." Durante was at a loss for words for a moment before snapping himself out of it. "Um…yes. Yes I'm fine," he said as he took hold of the hand in front of him and picked himself up out of the water.

Washu helped bring him to his feet and it was only then she saw his eyes clearly for the first time. It wasn't only their color that struck her but rather the actual look in them as well. They had the same look of the man she had seen before in her nightmares; eyes full of experience, sadness and hate but there was something else. There was passion there now and wonder as they looked at her. A sudden, strong familiarity came surging over her the longer she looked into this man's eyes and try as she might to remember what it was that was so familiar about him the more it eluded her. It was as if the answer was already there but being kept hidden from view behind a veil of mist. When she was a young girl at the Jurai Imperial Academy (now known as the Galaxy Academy thanks to her and Naja Akara) she had the same feeling when she tried to discover the true origins and nature of the gems as well as her own powers. Only later when she re-emerged as a goddess did that feeling go away and her complete memory returned.

"Is there something on my face?" Durante inquired to Washu as she continued to get lost in her deep train of thought, not realizing she was the one now staring.

"Oh I'm sorry, I got lost in my own little world there for a second," she replied. Upon realizing he was still holding her hand she pulled it away and took a few steps back to put more space between them. Even though he was somehow familiar to her she still didn't know him and that meant he was still quite possibly a danger to her and the others though the sight of him being soaking wet did make him look far less threatening.

"Who are you anyway? And why are you snooping around this place?"

"I'm renting out the guest house from Noboyuki and was just curious about the area so I was having a look around," replied Durante, telling only a half truth. "The name by the way is Edmond. Edmond Dantès."

Upon hearing this Washu raised an eyebrow, already suspicious of his motives after claiming that was in fact his real name. She wasn't a native of this planet but that didn't mean she was ignorant of the planet's culture either. She loved to read and an entire planet still using paper books was a rare treasure to her indeed, one of the many reasons she loved living here. She adored the smell of old books, a quirk no doubt but she didn't care. She had read The Count of Monte Cristo and knew the name this man was claiming to be his was in fact the same name of that particular book's main protagonist. That meant not only was he lying but he was likely hiding something as well. He may very well be the man from her nightmares but that only gave her more reason to be cautious and not trust him. Durante felt the same way as Washu did about him. Even though in his wildest hopes he never thought he'd actually encounter the woman from his dreams it did not mean he was ready to trust her outright either nor jeopardize his mission. He had been alive for far too long to be that foolish but the sheer pull of curiosity was getting the better of him. He wanted to know more about her so the mission could wait.

"And who are you exactly? What's your name?" Durante asked though doing his best to hide his interest in getting to know more about her.

"My name is Washu. Now if you don't mind I got work to do," she replied as she turned away and began walking along the stone path back towards the fields, leaving Durante standing behind her still soaking wet. Though it was not wise to turn her back on a potential threat she was not worried in the slightest. Washu was more than able to take care of herself and until she could prove he was a threat he was simply an annoyance. She would however be keeping a watchful eye on him.

Durante however was not too happy about being blown off by this woman after what had just transpired, nor did he like the her sudden change in attitude from one of amusement to interrogator. As she walked away Durante could not help but "observe" her other attractive qualities from behind. He may be an Immortal but he was still a man as well and he liked what he saw so far. Seemingly sensing that eyes were watching her Washu turned back in time to catch Durante in the act before he turned his head away and tried to play it off by looking at something else. Most women would be put off by this but then again not all women were a higher dimensional being that created the known universe and had seldom contact with the opposite sex. Tenchi was gone and despite her best efforts Washu was never able to really get his attention in the way she wanted, especially with the amount of competition she had from the others. Katsuhito and Noboyuki were both married and they did not interest her in that way nor did she really interest them. Regular human males on the planet also held little interest to her as they were nothing special but she honestly enjoyed the idea of capturing at least one man's attention for once as it made her feel young again, at least in the sense of being young when she was still another everyday mortal being. The fact was her advanced age combined with her fame, reputation, and demeanor had put off and intimidated more than a few men over the millennia. That and doing experiments on them against their will. As for now he didn't know who or what she really was and Washu decided to just roll with it a bit. Though she enjoyed the attention she still had a certain amount of self-respect and wasn't about to fawn over him in response. Eventually Durante caught up to her and began walking alongside her but kept his distance as to not make her feel uncomfortable or get her all wet.

"So that's it? Just Washu? No last name?" asked Durante as he brushed back his wet hair from covering his eyes.

"My last name is Hakubi," she replied. "Is there a reason you're following me? Shouldn't you go back to the house and dry off?"

"It's plenty warm outside so I'll dry off eventually. Besides I wanted to continue my "snooping around." This is the point Durante launched his initial attack, the first flirt. He had made an important note to be sarcastic and quote her previous remark to get her riled up before following up with the question. "I was thinking perhaps you could show me around instead since you live here and all."

"You have eyes and legs don't you? I'm sure you'll make just out fine on your own, I'm not a tour guide." Washu caught wind of his attempt to hit on her and deflected it. She was not so easily ensnared by something so crude and simple.

"Why not?" he asked. "I'm sure there are a lot of great views around here."

"You mean other than my ass?" replied Washu, bringing to light she was well aware of his earlier transgression.

"You're right, I'm sure I can find something more enticing to look at," quipped Durante. The second attack, serving to provoke her even further so as to lower her guard. He walked past her, leaving Washu standing in the dust behind him in a state of disbelief at what he just said.

"EXCUSE ME!?" yelled Washu before running to get in front of Durante, blocking his path. "What did you just say!?"

"Well, well aren't you a sensitive one?" Durante had an amused look on his face, no doubt having fun with his continued provocation of the red haired woman. He could tell she was flustered and upset but it only served to make her look cuter in his mind's eye.

"Don't try to change the subject, I want to know what you said!" Washu was growing more frustrated with this man and his rude demeanor. She knew what he was trying to do, the problem was it was working.

"Ms. Hakubi, has anyone ever said you have a fine color when you're on the scrap?" Durante was calm as he flirted with her, the smile on his face refusing to dissipate. He was very much enjoying himself at this point, not quite remembering the last time he had even attempted to garner the attention of a woman let alone having fun doing it. That and he found it to be great way to know more about her in a short amount of time as fighting and teasing always brought out the true colors in people. Washu began to turn even more red in the face. Whether she was blushing, getting angry or simply reacting to the hot weather was anyone's guess at this point.

"Stop being such a jerk and tell me!"

"Very well. I said I'm sure I could find something more enticing around here to look at other than your ass," confessed Durante as Washu's eyes narrowed at him in response.

"Judging from your remark…" he continued. "you obviously don't like me looking at your said ass or don't think highly enough of it to warrant me looking at it otherwise you wouldn't have insinuated there must be something more interesting for me to look at." Durante purposely twisted her words around to his own advantage and to get even more of a rise out of her.

"You might also want to consider wearing a bra as well…" he began to say as he looked down at her cleavage before being cut short by a sudden, hard slap to his face.

By this point Washu had lost her temper and had had enough of him. Red in the face and covering her chest with her arms she stormed off back towards the house, saying nothing. Never before had anyone gotten to her so quickly let alone make her feel so embarrassed at the same time. Her first impression of Durante was one of genuine dislike and disdain. Durante in the meantime was left rubbing his face to quell the pain but the wide grin from his face had far from faded. He watched her walk off, her arms still crossing her chest and made sure to take note of her rearward features once again as he took out a wet cigarette from his pack, not noticing it was already falling apart in his hand.

"The view looks great from back here!" he shouted at Washu from the top of his lungs before chuckling to himself. She flinched in response, removing her arms from her chest and using her hands to obscure her behind from further "observation". Durante continued to chuckle as he put the cigarette between his lips and continued watching her before realizing it had fallen apart and he had gotten a mouthful of wet tobacco instead.

"Ah shit…" he muttered to himself as he realized the whole pack was completely ruined, taking note of the much deserved karma. He crumpled up the pack and threw it on the ground before looking up and seeing Washu had disappeared from view. Still chuckling to himself, he removed his boots and wet socks before throwing them over his shoulders to help them dry faster and continued on barefoot having had plenty of practice doing so while fighting for the South during the American Civil War. Back then having shoes was a luxury in the Army of Northern Virginia especially towards the end of the war. For the first time in many months Durante was in a genuinely good mood and continued to think about Washu as he scouted the terrain looking for a spot to hide the cache when he acquired it. He was still entranced by her and the fact she was actually real was a reality he had trouble accepting though he admitted he had acted like a complete ass to her as well though he believed the attempt to flirt with her had been successful . For many days after this encounter in his own private moments he would think back to Washu covering her behind with her hands and laugh aloud, one of the few positive memories he had left at this point. After that it was back to business as usual.

* * *

Washu stormed into the house, still red in the face from both the heat and her recent run in with the man claiming to be Edmond Dantès, slamming the door behind her and startling the others. Ignoring their inquiries as to what was wrong she made straight for the kitchen and the fridge, grabbing a bottle of cold water from the top shelf and immediately started drinking it to calm herself down. She then made her way over to the table where the others were still eating lunch and took a seat, remaining silent as she struggled to fill her plate with food. Even a blind man could tell something was bothering her.

"Washu is something the matter?" asked Sasami, finally breaking the awkward silence before Washu knocked over her bottle of water as she set down her plate, spilling it on herself.

"Damn it!" she yelled before slamming her fists on the table, her frustration now blatantly apparent to everyone. "Damn that man for doing this to me!"

"What man? Who are you talking about?" asked Sasami. "Do you mean Dantès? Is he the reason you're so upset?"

"What did he do?" asked Mihoshi.

"It's not so much what he did but so much what he said I'm guessing," replied Ryoko with a grin on her face. Ryoko knew exactly what had happened to Washu because of the telepathic link they shared. Over time she had learned to reverse it and spy on Washu when she let her guard down. In this instance Dantès had gotten her so riled up she had done exactly that and revealed the experience through her thoughts which Ryoko was now relishing.

"Just look how red her face is! Its almost the same shade as her hair."

"Ryoko don't you dare," replied Washu with a stern look, now fully aware of her vulnerability as she closed the telepathic link.

"Don't dare do what?" asked Ryoko with an innocent tone. "I was just going to share your experience with everyone else here. You know get it out in the open we can _assess_ it properly."

"And maybe I'll show everyone the video of you in that cold, dark corner of the lab you loved so much," threatened Washu. Ryoko immediately let up on her teasing and remained quiet knowing Washu meant it. That day in the lab Washu had experimented on her against her will and left her there knowing she has a profound fear of being trapped in cold and dark places and then videotaped it as she cried out for her "Mommy" to come and let her go. She never forgave Washu for doing it but was reminded by the threat that she could and would do it again.

"What did he say exactly to upset you so much?" asked Noboyuki. He had known Washu for years by this point in his life and knew it took a lot to get to her. The only time Washu had ever even cried was when she revealed to Tenchi that at one point she had been married and given birth to a child or rather a son as they found out later on. The husband turned out to be from the Kuramitsu family which was one of the most influential and power families on Seniwa and in the Galactic Union. Mihoshi's family to be exact. The man had been forced to leave Washu because of her "lower class" status at the time and took the baby with him. Thus being the reason why Washu preferred to stay in her adolescent form rather than her current adult one. He knew it was a lot to ask of her to take the form but there were too many outsiders asking questions about her. Even at work he had been pressured by others to explain as to why she did not seem to age thus resulting in the current situation. She said she'd do it for a while as she worked to find a solution to the problem though now that Dantès had seen her she would be stuck in her current form for a while until he left.

"Nothing," she replied, not wanting to reveal what had happened. "The man is just rude and a jerk to boot."

"Well we agree on something for once," replied Ryoko thinking back to their little incident that morning which in turn was revealed to Washu via their link. Now she had even more of a reason to dislike this man and a determination to find out who he really was. For now Washu wanted to keep the fact he was using a fake moniker to herself until she could find out more about him. For now he was simply a nuisance to deal with. After she had finished eating Washu made her way to the hall closet which contained the inter-dimensional portal to her laboratory. Only she and the others recognized by the new security system could utilize it in this way with anyone else opening it to reveal a regular empty closet. Crossing through the doorway she instantly reached the other side, opening the door to hear the familiar jingle from the crab bell hanging above signaling that someone had entered. Immediately she sat down on her floating pillow and gesturing with her hands made her familiar holographic terminal appear from thin air before diving straight into her work, logging in the mental notes she had taken on Funaho. Try as she might however she was still much too irritated to concentrate, her mind continuing to wander back to the man who claimed to be the Count of Monte Cristo. She was still very suspicious of him and instead of working on her notes she switched over to her external security system that monitored the entire area. She found him easily enough, no surprise there. Her system was perfect after all, nobody else but the greatest scientific genius in the universe could do better.

 _"What a primitive slob…"_ Washu thought to herself as she saw the boots and socks hanging over his shoulders as he walked around the property barefoot. As she monitored his movements she could tell he wasn't just looking around for any old reason, there was a purpose to it. For a while she just watched him as he walked along before occasionally stopping at a location. He would study it for a while and then move on. As he did so Washu would mark it on a map on one of her separate monitors. She was puzzled as the pattern seemed to be random. Until she saw the locations in person it was too difficult to see what made these certain places worth noting. He then began walking up the stairs leading towards the Masaki family shrine. Eventually he made it towards the top and began scouting out the shrine and the surrounding buildings.

 _"Why are you really here?"_ she wondered. _"No, a better question to ask is who are you really?"_

She thought back to the word he had uttered when they had first met at the Royal Tree. Curious to know its meaning and thinking the source language could deliver some insight on this man she started a scan for the word by tapping into the planet's primitive information source that Earthlings called the world wide web or the internet. Eventually she found the word and the language it belonged to which was Latin, an effectively dead language that hadn't been in common use on the planet for some time which explains why her implant didn't pick up on it. A language anyone hardly used was not worth having. The word itself translated to having only one meaning, beautiful. She was honestly flattered upon discovering this and thought back to the look he had on his face as he stared at her. He had seemed quite captivated by the mere sight of her but also shocked, surprised and even seemed to recognize her as well. That didn't seem possible however as she had never met the man until today though she also recalled the fact he also seemed to fit the profile of the man from her nightmares which made her even more nervous. She took a scan of his face when the opportunity presented itself and also began running a check with the local and other galactic information networks such as the Galaxy Police and Jurai, seeing if he was even a native resident at all. Completely absorbed by her current task, Washu began to work at a feverish pace and would do so through the night trying to find out anything and everything about their new guest.

Durante was finally starting to dry off as he walked around the shrine, his damp socks and boots flapping against his shoulders. It was a peaceful place and he could tell it was quite old as well, having been here for generations no doubt. As he continued his scouting of the area he heard the sound of footsteps approaching from his left and looked to see an old man approaching him, his hands laced behind his back and had an overall calm demeanor.

"Good afternoon. Have you come to pray at the shrine?" the old man asked.

"No, I don't pray," replied Durante coldly.

"Oh is that so? That's too bad, praying is good for the soul."

"Whiskey is good for my soul. There are no gods, great spirits or any other such supernatural nonsense." Durante made sure his disdain of such things was as apparent as possible to the old man. Too many times priests or religious types had tried to sway him on the matter and Durante had grown quite tired of it. If he ever met God he'd sooner run him through with a sword let alone get down on his knees and pray to the son of a bitch.

"Well if it's a drink you need then follow me. I have a bottle in my office."

Durante did desire a drink and accepted the old man's invitation, following him to the office. Before entering Durante laid out his boots and socks to dry in the sun and then followed the old man inside, taking a seat on the floor at the small table. As promised the old man presented a bottle of alcohol, saké not surprisingly along with two small, flat saucer shaped cups. He poured the alcohol and then served it to Durante, sliding it across the table. He then took his own cup up into his hand and raised it, proposing a toast.

"What should we toast to?" the old man asked.

Durante thought for a moment and raised his cup in return, "Here's to good saké."

The old man nodded approvingly and took a drink from his cup while Durante threw back his own swallowing all of it in one go before helping himself to another.

"I'm Katsuhito by the way," said the old man as he took another sip from his cup. "I assume you're one of our new guests?"

"Yes I am. The name is Edmond Dantès," replied Durante before finishing another drink.

"Is it really that hot out there?" asked Katsuhito, curious as to why Dantès was all damp.

"Oh this," replied Durante as he tugged on his wet shirt. "Let's just I fell head over heels for a beautiful woman and this was the end result."

Katsuhito gave a hardy laugh before replying, "And which one was it might I ask?"

"Which one what?"

"Which one of our beautiful girls was it that made you end up like that?"

"The red haired one, Washu. It happened over by that large tree in the grove" answered Durante thinking back to the incident.

"Is that so?" asked Katsuhito curiously. "She really made that kind of an impression on you?"

"I guess she did. The feeling wasn't mutual however. It ended up with her storming off in a bit of a fuss."

"Mind telling the story? I have another bottle we could open," asked Katsuhito who just glad to have some male company for once. Noboyuki was rarely around due to his job and married life with Rea while his grandson was off in space at the Galaxy Academy. Plus they rarely got any visitors at the shrine these days so he was glad to have a conversation regardless of what it was about. The girls were good company to be sure but it was hard for him to act like a man or say certain things while in the company of like minded men. After grabbing a fresh towel for Durante and another bottle of saké Durante began to tell Katsuhito about what had happened earlier between Washu and himself. After some sometime had passed the story ended with the sound of laughter emanating from the building at the top of the shrine.

"Well I must say that is quite the tale," said Katsuhito as he calmed himself down from laughing so hard by finishing off what was left in the bottle. "Washu is not used to having that kind of attention these days, she's always nose deep in her work."

"And what work is that anyway?" asked Durante, interested to know more about her. "She seemed to be studying that tree in great detail earlier. Is she a dendrologist?

"It's not my place to say," he responded. "You'll have to ask her that yourself. That is if she's willing to even talk to you at this point."

Durante rose up from the table and stretched his arms upwards, getting the kink out of his back. Katsuhito rose up from the table as well and the two men made their way to the door.

"I rather doubt it," replied Durante as he made his way back outside and sat down on the steps, putting his somewhat dry socks and boots on. "I'd have better luck getting that cat or whatever the hell it is to talk to me at this point."

"Give her some time my friend, she'll open up after she's cooled off a bit and gotten to know more about you."

"That's just it," replied Durante as he stood up. "I don't want her to know more about me."

"Why is that?" asked Katsuhito as he raised an eyebrow. "It's a two way street for people to get to know one another. Do you have something to hide?"

"It's better for all of you to know as little about me as possible, for your own sakes."

Durante thanked Katsuhito for the drinks and the conversation, shaking his hand. Katsuhito shook back and invited him back again tomorrow at the same time which Durante graciously accepted. As Katsuhito watched him walk away he thought back to a battle he had witnessed in September of 1877 and to a single man clad in traditional samurai armor emblazoned in grey. The very same man he had just drank and talked with. He watched that very same man 120 years ago be cut down by a hail of gunfire as he charged the lines of the then new Japanese Imperial Army. He had the same look as he did now with long stringy hair, unshaven and eyes as cold and hard as steel. No fear and a willingness if not a longing to die. No one else had made it as close to the lines that day as he did. The memory of that man had stuck with Katsuhito for many years after and had always been a source of inspiration for selfless courage and bravery fro him. Now that man was alive and Katsuhito wanted to know how and why. He then turned around and went back inside his office. Such mysteries could wait, paperwork and bills could not.


	4. Chapter III - Behold A Pale Horse

Washu stared into the monitors in front of her as they continued streaming information before she began rubbing her eyes, trying to stave off the fatigue. She had stayed up all night finishing her research and searching for more information on this so called Edmond Dantès but so far she had found absolutely nothing about the man other than the book title the name originated from and what the others had told her. She knew that Dantès has said to them that he was a military contractor which did not help much to narrow down the search. The Juraian and Galaxy Police information networks turned up nothing as did the local Earth internet which didn't surprise her considering how still new and primitive it was. She had even broken into every available government database on the planet scouring records but with nothing other than a fake name, a supposed occupation and the rather unflattering face scan she had taken it was difficult to find anything. Until she had more relevant data it was pointless to continue any further search and this man's true identity would remain unknown. For now at least.

Washu leaned back on her seat as she stretched her arms upward and gave a long, hard yawn. She was very tired and most of all hungry yet again. She saw the time back at the Masaki house and realized it was now early in the morning having begun work the previous afternoon. She decided to call it quits and continue on later after she had gotten something to eat and then some sleep. Before she opened the subspace portal back to the house she rerouted it to connect to the closet in Tenchi's room rather than the one on the ground floor as to avoid alerting Dantès and his companion as well as explaining how and why she suddenly appeared out of a broom closet. After she connected the portal and exited Tenchi's room she made her way downstairs and towards the kitchen. It was still very early in the morning, almost dawn in fact so Sasami would not yet be awake let alone making breakfast. As she reached the entrance to the kitchen she heard the sound of the coffee machine going as it brewed a fresh pot as well as catching the faint fragrance of cigarette smoke emanating from somewhere. She turned around to see that the sliding door leading out to the deck was wide open. At first she thought it was Noboyuki since he was the only one that drank coffee and smoked which she thought to be a nasty and stupid habit considering what it does to the lungs. As she made her way outside to yell at him for leaving the door open however she saw that it was Dantès and not Noboyuki as she had assumed. The man was simply standing there at the edge of the decking with a blanket draped over his shoulders looking out over the lake as he smoked, thinking of what she did not know. He heard her footsteps approaching and instinctively turned around as if to meet a threat, similar to an animal after it hears a rustling in the underbrush. She stopped in her tracks and saw the fierce but brief look on his face before he relaxed; easing down his guard once he realized it was just her.

"Good morning," Durante said quietly, keeping his voice down so as to not wake anyone else in the house. "I see I'm not the only one who didn't sleep last night."

"How do you know I didn't sleep?"asked Washu, curious to how he could possibly know.

"Well either you slept in your clothes from yesterday," Durante gestured to her with his cigarette. "Or you were up all night doing whatever it is you do. I say it's the latter seeing as how fatigued you look and that you also have bags underneath your eyes."

Washu looked herself over and realized he was right; she hadn't changed her clothes since yesterday after she had started work. Seemingly without thought or a response to what happened the last time they spoke Washu covered her chest with her arms to hide her breasts from view.

"Relax," he said in response to her reaction. "If I was sneaking a look at the goods you'd know it."

"That has nothing to do with it," Washu fervently denied. "I'm just cold is all."

She told a partial truth. The main reason was in fact to obscure her "goods" from his sight but she was also starting to get cold. Wearing shorts and a tank top was fine for hot weather but a rather poor choice for so early in the morning. Durante looked at her before taking one last puff of his cigarette and flicked it into the lake. Calmly he walked over to her as he removed the blanket from his shoulders and without saying a word flew it over and around her before it came to rest over her own.

"How's that?" Durante asked as he wrapped it around her tight before letting go. "Better?"

"Yes," she responded, surprised at his sudden kindness and concern for her well-being. "Thanks."

"Now…" he started as he walked past her back towards the house. "How about a hot cup of coffee to go with?"

Before Washu could even answer him he had walked back into the house and a short time later reappeared with two cups of steaming coffee in his hands. He passed one cup to her while taking the other and bringing it up to his nose, breathing in deep its intoxicating fragrance before taking a drink. The cup was hot but it felt good as it melted away the icy sensation in her hands. Copying him she smelled the liquid before taking a drink as the bitter taste hit her tongue. It was her first time drinking black coffee or coffee in general and while the taste was something to be desired the effect was noteworthy. A warming sensation came over her and she became more alert and awake as well as the effects of the caffeine took hold of her. She looked over at Dantès who was himself looking up into the sky overlooking the lake and for a time neither one said a word. The only sounds being that of insects, birds beginning to sing their morning songs and a gentle breeze blowing over the lake as well as the many plants and trees, rustling their branches and leaves. The sun had still not come up or rather in Washu's mind the side of the Earth she was on had not yet rotated to the point it was facing its home star. The sky was still dark but a faint light could be seen with hues of pink, orange, red and violet streaming across it.

"It's a good time of the day," Durante said suddenly, breaking the silence between them. He glanced briefly over at Washu and then back again at the sky. "I always enjoy this time just before the dawn. It's a time when the world is just beginning to stir but not yet awake and one can imagine they have the entirety of creation to themselves. When all this over I shall miss it very much. "

"What do you mean by that?" asked Washu, confused by the rather bleak meaning at the end of his statement. "When all this is over?"

"I meant when I finish what I came here to do and leave this place. It really does have some spectacular views…not just your ass."

"My you _really_ know how to compliment a lady," replied Washu sarcastically as she turned her head away and took another sip of the hot, bitter tasting drink in her hand.

"I didn't mean it as an insult," Durante replied back. "Your ass is a spectacular view in its own right."

Washu gave a heavy sigh. A moment ago he had been so kind and thoughtful with the blanket and coffee, then deep and insightful with his personal view of the morning but now he was back to provoking her once again.

"You're not going to apologize for what you did to me yesterday are you?"

"Nope."

Washu became angry when she heard this. She was going to get back at him for yesterday and it was now she spotted her opportunity. He was distracted, his guard was down and he was standing at the edge of the water. Without saying a word and with her one free hand she pushed him and sent him head first into the lake with a large splash following suit. She continued to drink her coffee and looked down at Dantès with a smirk as he surfaced.

"What the hell was that for!?" yelled Durante as he treaded water to stay afloat.

"Maybe that will teach you some manners," she replied calmly before turning around and heading back towards the house.

Durante wasn't having it. Not once but twice now he had been humiliated in the same way because of this woman though he admitted the first time was a result of his own carelessness. He quickly pulled himself out of the water and chased after Washu before scooping her up in his arms and then throwing her over his shoulder sending the blanket and coffee tumbling to the ground. He then made his way back towards the lake's edge with Washu kicking and hitting his back with her fists.

"What do you think you're doing!?" she exclaimed. "Put me down this instant!"

"Your wish is my command dear lady," replied Durante before he tossed Washu into the lake. The saying was revenge was a dish best served cold and Washu was now freezing as she felt the sudden shock of the cold water hit her entire body at once. She surfaced with a gasp, her arms crossing each other as she tried in vain to stave off the cold of the water and get warm while she stayed afloat.

"What is wrong with you!?" she yelled at the top of her lungs. "Why are you such a child!?"

"That's rich coming from the person who started it!" replied Durante as he watched Washu pull herself out of the water, standing before him sopping wet and shivering.

"I started it!? You're the one who started it yesterday with your…your crude advances and comments!"

"Is that so? I seem to remember you giving me the cold shoulder and blowing me off from the beginning."

"You're the one who was staring at my butt!" Washu yelled back.

"Probably because you're nice to look at!" he yelled back at her even louder, silencing the opposition. "You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen, both in my life and in my dreams!"

Washu didn't really know what to do at this point, she taken aback by his rather sudden and direct outburst. As she looked back at him the same passion she had seen in his eyes yesterday was there once again. It was a look she had not seen from a man in many thousands of years as she seldom took the form of a young woman and men were simply not attracted to a short, flat chested adolescent girl who refused to grow up because she didn't want to be hurt again or deal with the world of adults. However that earlier sense of familiarity returned to her. That same sense that they had known each other from so very long ago but still she could not place it. She was more than sure that before yesterday she had never met this man before in her life but she could not deny the fact she did recognize him, more than what Dantès assumed she did.

"In your dreams?" Washu said with a quiet tone, forgetting she was still dripping wet.

"Yes, you're the woman I've seen in my dreams for as long as I can remember. I've seen you standing in that strange, burning city just below the towering tree." He saw the look on her face and realized she seemed hardly surprised, even seeming to hold something back.

"You've had the same dream haven't you?"

"No…I…I haven't," Washu denied as she looked away to avoid making eye contact with him.

"Yes you have!" Durante accused her as he grabbed her by the shoulders, looking directly into her eyes. "You have seen me in your dreams, the very same dreams I've had. I saw it yesterday when we first met under the tree and I see it now, you recognized me just as much as I did you. What is it you're so afraid of? Just admit it!"

"I'm not afraid of anything and I don't have to admit to anything either, least of all to you!" She broke free of his grasp and pushed him away. "I don't care about some stupid nightmare and I don't care about you so just leave me the hell alone!"

Uncomfortable, soaking wet and not knowing what else to do in response to the mixed feelings now running through her mind Washu did the only thing she could do. She turned her back and simply walked away from it, leaving Dantès standing on the pier all alone and going back into the house to disappear into her lab yet again. She had lost her appetite and most of all simply wanted to get away from this man and just be alone with her thoughts. In Durante's mind Washu had just rejected him completely and outright, the worst part being she now wanted nothing to do with him. It was simply another thing to add to his list of failures in life. Quietly he took a route around the main house rather than go through it and back to the guest house, heading into the bathroom to take off his soaking wet clothes and take a hot shower. Before doing so however he caught sight of his reflection in the mirror, the mere sight of himself making him beyond angry. He felt like a fool for having even thought that a dream come true would somehow become that which he had desired most of his life. Confusing, raw emotions now ran through his mind. Without thinking and rage now dominating him from within Durante smashed the mirror with his fist and with it his own reflection before slumping down onto the floor, burying his face in his now bloody hands.

Before he had come to this place he had resolved to find and kill Muller, avenging all those who had died by his hand during the war and then ending his own miserable life as well. Now on the turn of a dime he was discovering he wanted to live. After meeting Washu, the literal woman of his dreams he now wanted what he never dared to hope to achieve. He wanted to live for her but he had also already made his choice and felt he couldn't turn back now. In truth he was terrified of telling her who and what he really was. He knew he was no better than what Muller was, having committed his own series of atrocities in the name of Rome. At the end of the Third Punic War he had ordered the complete destruction of Carthage, annexing all its remaining territory and ordering the deaths or enslavement of the entire Carthaginian population. Men, women and children all were either put to the sword or forced to live out their lives in bondage for the benefit of his own ambitions and the republic he loved so dear. Later when slaves rose up under Spartacus it was Durante who finally brought them to heel and had the survivors crucified as a warning to all others who dared challenge the might of Rome. Over 6000 slaves lined the Appian Way and suffered in agony all the way from Rome itself to Capua, a distance of almost 200 kilometers or roughly 120 miles. They were events the world remembered as ancient history but for Durante it happened only yesterday. Nothing would ever make up for his crimes nor would any amount of self-justification. He was a pitiful soul and a monster, undeserving of anything in life other than death which he now resolved to achieve no matter what to end his own suffering. And this time he wouldn't be coming back.

* * *

 **-TWO WEEKS LATER-**

Sasami was running down the dirt road as fast as her legs could carry her. From behind she could hear her pursuer's footsteps as they chased after her, getting ever closer as they shouted and hollered that they were coming for her. The first week back to school had been horrible and now it seemed to be following her home as well. Many of the older high school students had been teasing her about her hair color and now it had come to a head. Her muscles ached and her lungs burned as she continued to breathe in deep the cool autumn air as she ran. Just ahead she could see the outline of the house and safety. She could very easily fight back but the risk of causing them serious injury was far too great and Washu had been adamant that under no circumstances was she to reveal her true powers short of her very life being in danger. Being chased by a bunch of bullies who wanted to tease her over the color of her hair hardly seemed to fit that condition. As she continued running she shot a quick glance over her left shoulder and saw that they were right on top of her before she stepped on a rock and tripped, tumbling over into the ground. The older male students who had been chasing her now surrounded her and began to harass her, pointing and laughing at her hair and even pulling on it. By now the strain had begun to take a toll on Sasami and she began to tear up while continuing to sit there and take it, the discipline of a Juraian princess continuing to hold firm.

When it had reached the point where she had finally had enough and was ready to act a hand suddenly grabbed one of the boys from behind and threw him to the ground hard, knocking the wind out of him. In what seemed a mere instant all the other boys soon ended up in the same way. Sasami looked up to see who it was that had come to her aid and was surprised to see it was Dantès, now standing over her as he shielded her from her tormentors. He had since cut his hair much shorter and also shaved off his beard which she admitted made him look much more appealing. The oldest one of the group painfully got back up on his feet and then bum rushed Dantès in a blind rage, throwing a punch that was easily blocked and caught by Dantès right hand. Slowly but deliberately Dantès clamped down with immense strength on the boy's fist before he began to scream in agony as the bones in his hand began to buckle and break, the sound of which could clearly be heard by a loud cracking noise. Dantès then released the boy's hand from his grasp as he fell to the ground, clutching it with his other hand in pain. Hurriedly his companions got to their feet and helped their friend up before running away with their tails between their legs. Dantès then turned his attention to Sasami who was still lying on the ground covered with dirt and wiping her tears away.

"Are you alright?" asked Dantès as he offered her his hand.

Sasami took hold of it and tried to stand up before she cried out in pain and fell back down to the ground.

"My foot," she said with swimming eyes. "It really hurts."

"Let me see," replied Dantès as he carefully removed the shoe and sock from her right foot before examining it. There was some swelling an obvious tenderness as she recoiled in pain from his touch. There was no doubt that it was broken. Unable to stand, let alone walk Dantès picked her up into his arms while slinging her backpack over his shoulder and began walking back to the house. The last couple of weeks in the house had been less than thrilling for everyone since the renters had moved in. The constant reminder that outsiders were in the house at any given moment and that they had to maintain a constant vigilance over everything they said and did was starting to wear on everyone especially Washu who seemed to be growing more and more annoyed at having to stay stuck in her adult form and sneak around making sure Dantès and Nicolai didn't see her disappear into the closet. Everyone also noticed the tension that existed between her and Dantès. They avoided each other when they could and said almost nothing to one another, only ever exchanging glances and looks. What had transpired between them nobody knew but the resentment was there. Noboyuki didn't take notice as he was often absent and continued to focus on his work or marital affairs while Katsuhito spent the majority of his time at the shrine.

Nobody in the house minded Nicolai who seemed to be genuinely enjoying himself as he relaxed and recuperated from his injuries thanks to Dantès constant attention and care. Day or night he waited on his friend to see him back to good health and in some ways they admired Dantès for his stout dedication. However he had become even more distant and cold hearted to the others as time went on, preferring his own company to smoke and drink before disappearing from the property for hours if not days at a time conducting his own business. He would meet with Katsuhito once in a while at the shrine, discussing what with him the others did not know nor would he say. Washu had pressed Katsuhito for more information about what Dantès had told him which he refused to divulge out of respect and courtesy for his guest. By now though it was apparent to Washu despite her continued failure to acquire more information on Dantès that whatever he was really here for it had absolutely nothing to do with her or the others. As long as he wasn't a threat and was only here for another week she didn't care what he did at this point as she had more important work to do.

Dantès kicked the door to the house open with Sasami still in his arms, taking Ryoko and Mihoshi completely off guard as they were relaxing in the living room. He walked up to the other couch parallel from the one they were sitting on and laid Sasami down as Washu came walking out from the kitchen to see what the commotion was about. For a moment she and Dantès exchanged an uneasy look before deciding to put their personal problems aside and focus on the situation at hand.

"What happened?" she asked as he walked over to the couch with Ryo-Ohki running alongside her, the cabbit jumping onto the couch with concern for Sasami. The creature still perplexed Dantès and he had even gone as far to do his own research on it but turned up nothing. It simply didn't exist in the animal kingdom and certainly wasn't local. It also seemed to show intelligence, often responding to emotions and verbal commands as if it were human which was shocking to say the least. However it still took a back seat to his own plans. For now it was unimportant, especially with the situation before him.

"She has a broken foot," Dantès replied to Washu as he used pillows to elevate Sasami's right leg before turning his attention to Mihoshi and Ryoko.

"You two go get me some ice, water and a first aid kit." They responded to his order with a blank stare for a moment before he barked at them. "NOW!"

Regaining their senses they ran off to retrieve what he has asked for, returning a few minutes or so later with the requested items before Dantès ripped it from their grasps and began treating Sasami's foot.

"Do you even know what you're doing?" asked Ryoko as she looked on.

"I've treated everything from simple fractures such as this to gunshot wounds and men with missing limbs. Now shut up and stop asking me stupid questions."

Ryoko was irked by his response and was about to say something back before she saw the look on Washu's face who she shook her head. It was a signal for Ryoko to simply do as he says and remain quiet. They watched as he gave Sasami some aspirin and water before applying a compression wrap around her foot to help keep the swelling down. He then took a case cover off one of the couch pillows, filling it with ice and using it as a makeshift ice pack and applying it to Sasami's foot.

"Mihoshi come here," he ordered yet again, continuing to control the situation. She did as he asked before he took her hand and placed it on the ice pack, pushing her hand down.

"Apply slight pressure and ice her foot for 20 minutes and then remove it for 20 minutes, repeating until the swelling goes down. Then get her to a doctor as soon as you can," said Dantès with the sound of authority in his voice still apparent.

In the span of about ten minutes Washu had observed and learned more about this man than in the last two weeks combined. He was experienced at dealing with chaotic and high stress situations which required focus and a calm mindset to deal with. He was also used to taking control and issuing out orders as well as having those orders obeyed instantly and without question. His earlier comment on treating injuries similar wounds to Sasami's along with more gruesome ones indicated to her he had a background beyond that of a simple "military contractor" being placed in an advisory role and providing training as he had claimed. It was obvious he had seen combat as well and from what it sounds like the very worst it had to offer. It would also explain his apparent lack of empathy, distant emotions, a preference for solitude as well as his excessive smoking and drinking as well as lack of sleep. All of them signs of severe post-traumatic stress. At last she was beginning to unravel who he really was. Dantès then stood up to leave, making his way back outside to his usual spot on the pier overlooking the lake before lighting up a cigarette. Washu followed him outside, not sure what to expect given the last time they were out here together. He hadn't really spoken to her since she told him off but Washu hadn't really made any effort to talk to him either. Now she wanted to make up for it.

"Dantès?"

He didn't answer, keeping his back to her as he continued to smoke. She could feel the tension and tell the resentment was still there.

"Dantès please answer me," said Washu, keeping her voice low but clear.

"I thought you wanted me "to leave you the hell alone?" he responded before inhaling another hit from his cigarette, breathing out the smoke a moment later.

"I just wanted to thank you for what you did for Sasami. I don't think anyone could have handled it any better. I also wanted to apologize for what I said before and also to say…that you were right."

Dantès finally turned to Washu, giving her his full attention.

"Right about what?"

"About my nightmares or rather your dreams," she answered. "About how they are one in the same. The burning city, the towering tree and the part where I get…where you…kill me."

Dantès saw how uncomfortable talking about it made her, avoiding eye contact with him and hanging her head low while she rubbed her left arm. He put out his cigarette and walked over to her, placing his hands on her shoulders.

"Washu…" he said softly before she looked up at him. "There's nothing to forgive."

The look on his face was sincere and kind, the animosity gone and replaced by genuine concern and compassion.

"There's no need to fear me either," he continued. "A dream is a dream or a nightmare a nightmare, it means nothing. And know I would never raise my hand against you nor allow anything or anyone to ever harm you. I swear my very life on that."

Washu didn't know what to say. The sheer amount of passion in his words, the sincerity in his voice and the look in his eyes. She had seen and heard them all before when she was so much younger and innocent. Was he…in love with her? No he couldn't be. They didn't know anything about one another; they'd hidden their true selves from view but she knew that look all too well along with the happiness and the pain that could come from it. Part of her longed to embrace such things again but her logic told her how foolish and stupid she would be for doing so. No, she couldn't chance allowing herself to go through that pain she had experienced before. She didn't even know his real name and he was an Earthling, a primitive human who had yet to even look past the stars in the sky much less travel to them. Plus time itself would bring about an even greater pain later on when age finally took him away. She was a goddess, everlasting and all-knowing but even she could not bear the fact she would in the very end of all things come to be alone. She would outlive everyone she cared about or loved apart from her sister goddesses but that loss still included Ryoko, Sasami, Mihoshi, Ayeka and all the others including Tenchi. Tenchi, the boy with the power to develop the Light Hawk Wings would one day die as well. A thought too painful for her to bear which is part of the reason she no longer pursued him for herself. He deserved to live a normal life with one of the other girls or perhaps even all of them. She would be there of course as support but in the end she wanted to spare herself that great pain of loss. Even though time was an enemy she could control to a degree it was something that could never truly be conquered.

"Umm I hate to break up this touching moment…" said Ryoko as she walked outside, waiving a letter in her hand as she observed the two standing together. " But a courier just arrived for you with this."

"For me?" asked Dantès as he released his hold of Washu and walked over to Ryoko, grabbing the letter from her hand as she handed it to him. He quickly opened it and began to read its contents. The moment he had been waiting for had finally come and much earlier than he had anticipated. The smugglers he had made the deal with earlier had finally gotten his weapons and gear into the country and they wanted to meet for the final exchange and payment which was confirmed via the code they agreed to use, the location and time to meet having been agreed upon earlier before he arrived into the country. Saying nothing more to either Washu or Ryoko he walked briskly back into the house, passing Mihoshi and Sasami and headed straight to the guest house to gather what he needed. In his eagerness to leave he had dropped the letter onto the ground as he walked away. Washu picked it up and began reading it, realizing it was in French as her universal translator implant began deciphering it. After she had met Dantès under Funaho she had updated it with all the languages of Earth available to her.

"Blessent mon cœur d'une langueur monotone," uttered Washu, confused by the brief message and its meaning. It made no sense to her whatsoever but it had to Dantès given his reaction. It was obviously a code of some kind.

"What the hell does that mean?" asked Ryoko.

"Wound my heart with a monotonous languor."

"And that means?"

"I honestly don't know," answered Washu as she gave it some more thought before coming to a conclusion. "But we're going to find out by seeing where he runs off to."

"But why?" asked Ryoko. "What do you care what he does?"

"Because I need to know who he really is. I need to know the real man behind that phony name."

"Phony name? What are you talking about?"

"He's been lying to us all about who he really is and now I'm going to find out why," replied Washu as she walked back inside the house and into her laboratory to prepare for the data she would soon be receiving. She would have an automated drone follow Dantès and stick to him like glue as the Earth saying goes. It was something he would never notice was even there let alone detect and she would find out the truth.

Unbeknownst to Washu and the others however unfriendly eyes in a cloaked ship were watching them from a distance, having for some time been looking for an opening or vulnerability in which to exploit to carry out their mission and capture what their master has ordered them to do. Their master's information about the security system has been spot on and they had so far gone completely undetected by it or the inhabitants it was meant to protect. Their main target was the gemstones that they carried along with the capture or elimination of all the inhabitants in the house save for four who were to be captured at all costs. The one identified as Sasami Masaki Jurai, second and youngest daughter of the current Emperor of Jurai. The other three were by far more complicated to address, the legendary space pirate Ryoko who retained two of the gems needed and her spaceship Ryo-Ohki along with their creator and original owner of the gems, Washu Hakubi. All were considered extremely dangerous and very powerful with any direct assault against them being doomed to failure. However brute force and power were not always necessary to defeat a superior enemy.

Washu and Ryoko were still human and like all humans they had emotions and attachments which could be exploited and used to force them to comply with wishes and demands. The ones called Mihoshi and Noboyuki were the weakest of the group and thus would be the primary targets. Once they had been captured the data showed that due to their emotional attachments the others would fall into line for the sake of their safety. The recent additions to the household however was cause for concern at first given the lack of data on them but after seeing the turmoil they caused it was seen as an advantage rather than a hindrance. They had kept the attention of their targets occupied especially Washu who seemed to be going through an emotional disturbance which had thrown off her focus. Now that her attention was drawn to the one calling himself Dantès the time to carry out the operation had come as they would never have a better opportunity. Once night had fallen the attack would begin and soon the greatest power in the universe would be theirs along with the universe itself.

* * *

Durante weaved in and out of traffic as fast as he was physically able, the sports bike screaming as the engine hit the highest RPM before he changed up a gear again and blasted past the cars around him. The motorcycle had been stolen of course, no need to drop any more funds on actually buying transportation when it was available anywhere out in the nearest city. He had nicked it one night coming back from one of his meetings with one of his intelligence contacts after he had missed the last train for the night. In truth he was drunk when he done the deed and rode it all the way back to the Masaki house and had kept it hidden well enough away from prying eyes until he needed it. In fact he had kept it off the property entirely due to the constant tirade of questions he had received from the others as to where he disappeared to for so long to which he always replied that is was simply work related and none of their business. As a result of the constant attention he began distancing himself from the others as much as possible, going as far as to only take his meals at the guest house or staying out longer than needed after meetings and deals. Often he would stop at a local bar and simply drink and smoke into the very early hours of the morning to simply kill time and also draw off any suspicion as to what he was really doing. Who would question anyone of what their activities were when they came home late almost every other night reeking of cigarettes and alcohol?

He did however often visit with Katsuhito at his shrine office to hold conversations on various things including politics and history, the latter of which seemed to interest him most. The last conversation they had had was focused solely on an event called the Satsuma Rebellion where Katsuhito described in detail the account of a foreign warrior or rather a mercenary who had fought in it during the Battle of Shiroyama. He told how the foreigner clad in traditional samurai armor had helped lead a suicidal charge of remaining samurai against the lines of the Imperial Japanese Army wielding nothing more than swords. He alone had reached the lines of the enemy despite being wounded many times over had managed to kill many Imperial soldiers in the process. With his last breath he had flung his sword towards his enemies before collapsing onto the ground dead, having been shot to pieces. At this point Katsuhito presented the sword he claimed had landed at the feet of one of the surviving Imperial officers, his "ancestor". Durante knew of what he spoke for he had been there. It wasn't unusual for him to run into a story about himself from the past but the way in which Katsuhito told it made it seem that Durante and the warrior described were one in the same which was true. He was also curious as to how well Katuhito described the details of that day as if he had also been there which was impossible; the man was just a regular human after all.

Other than that Durante had fooled them into thinking he was a solitude seeking drunkard or perhaps they simply no longer cared enough to inquire any further of what he did with his time. All except for Washu who had ignored him entirely of her own accord for the last two weeks. He wasn't as enamored with her as he had been before when he had first seen her under the tree and the reality of the fact that the woman wanted nothing to do with him had long since settled in with the feeling becoming mutual. That is until she had spoken to him this afternoon about Sasami and the dream they both shared. He had wanted to discuss it in more detail with her but the arrival of the letter immediately took first priority over his own personal feelings. The timing of the letter also couldn't have been any better as he had only a couple days before finally tracked down Muller's exact position along with all the details necessary to form an attack plan and now with the weapons and gear he needed finally arriving he could carry out this plan of attack. Durante thought he had overcome his momentary lapse of weakness after meeting Washu, this woman from his dreams but now after their last meeting he was once again having second thoughts. He had been burdened with confusing emotions after their last verbal exchange but had since then steeled his resolve to carry on with his plan. He had found Muller and now he would kill him along with himself in the process. His time on this world was now at an end and nothing, not even the fulfillment of a lifelong dream, vision or whatever one would call it would get in his way now. However having recalled what he had said to her only an hour or so before doubt began to gnaw at his mind as the same feelings he had felt for her before had returned and now his draw towards her was as strong as ever. He quickly suppressed these feelings and set his mind back to the task at hand. Reckoning was the order of the day and nothing else. Pulling down on the throttle of the bike he took off at lightning speed towards his destination that lay deep in the nearest city.

Washu along with Ryoko who was standing behind her watched on the monitor as Dantès careened through the maze of cars on the highway at near suicidal speeds. He was very much in a hurry to get somewhere and judging based on his ability to identify and instantly navigate the many obstacles in front of him Washu could start to see he was anything but a normal Earthling, not even a Galaxy Police officer equipped with nanomachines could react that quickly. He also seemed to care little about the well-being of those around him as he continued to violate every traffic law known to man, at least on this planet anyway. She observed him then get off the highway and blast through the city until he at last reached what looked to be an abandoned industrial complex. Many of the buildings were worn out from lack of use and long exposure to the elements, broken glass panes and unused equipment scattered about the area rusting away. It was obvious the spot had been chosen for its isolation and lack of population to lessen the likelihood of any would be witnesses. He stopped the bike just outside one of the warehouses before dismounting and produced a crude looking handgun from out of his jacket pocket. They watched as he pulled back the slide and checked to make sure a round was chambered before he flipped the safety off and cocked the hammer back so it was ready to fire in single action instead of double, easing the pull pressure on the trigger to ensure a more accurate shot. Washu became very angry at this though she knew such a primitive weapon was not really much of a threat to her or the others but rather at the fact she had allowed it slip by unnoticed. What if it had been something far more dangerous? She had become far too complacent and relaxed in the last few years living at the Masaki house and made a mental note to redouble her efforts in the future.

They watched as Dantès walked into the warehouse with his right hand still on the gun in his pocket as his lone footsteps echoed throughout the vast empty space. He stopped and began looking around, observing his surroundings before pulling out his signature pack of cigarettes, opening the top and shaking it so a single one popped up before putting it into his mouth and lighting it up. Ryoko commented on how it reminded her of those old black and white movies on TV with the detectives who all seemed to produce their cigarettes in a similar fashion. Washu ignored her and continued to observe Dantès for a time before he seemed alerted to the sound of approaching vehicles. Two black sedans and a white van pulled into the warehouse as Dantès put out his cigarette and made his way over to meet with the vehicle's occupants as they exited their vehicles. There were six armed men and seemed to be from the criminal element in the country which wasn't surprising seeing how the civilian population did not or rather was not allowed access to such weaponry.

"Did you bring the money?" asked one of the men who seemed to be the leader given the armed guards flanking him. He was middle aged, much shorter than Dantès and wore a refined, black suit with a pair of sunglasses to hide his face. Dantès took notice of his left hand and the pinky which had been shortened via amputation. It was no doubt a result of yubitsume, a signature ritual used by the Yakuza to atone for their sins or offenses against another member of their organization. Either this man was still a member as were all his companions or was a member at some point. The Yakuza these days had abstained from using firearms or being involved with them at all due to the very strict consequences of the country's laws. He therefore assumed this man was a freelancer.

"That depends," answered Dantès as he put his finger on the trigger of the gun in his pocket. "Did you bring what we agreed upon?"

The leader yelled to his men who in turn opened the back doors of the van and gestured for Dantès to make his way over and look. Inside was an arsenal of weapons and gear including all the ammunition needed to feed them. Washu was now beyond concerned and flat out alarmed at what she saw. She thought this man wasn't a threat but now she cursed herself for being so naive. Even Ryoko was shocked at what she saw as they continued to watch. Dantès grabbed one of the bags and opened it to reveal a simple looking weapon made of steel and wood. It was an ugly and very primitive looking weapon in Washu's eyes and the design seemed far too simplistic to be effective. Dantès pulled the bolt back on it and cleared the chamber before he pulled the trigger to confirm it was functioning properly.

"Is it satisfactory?" The leader observed Dantès, him men becoming more nervous the longer he held the weapon in his hands.

"Yes everything is acceptable." Dantès reached into his jacket to retrieve the envelope containing the rest of the money he owed. The men surrounding him acted immediately as they brought their guns to bear on him, no doubt thinking he was pulling a weapon.

"Carful…we wouldn't want any unnecessary violence now would we?" A cheap grin came across the leader's face revealing a gaudy looking gold tooth. To Durante the shiny addition made him look like a complete idiot.

Dantès slowly walked forward and pulled his hand out of his jacket and revealed a thick envelope with a rubber band around it. He tossed it over to the leader of the group who caught it and opened it up to reveal a thick stack of cash inside. He counted it before looking back up at Dantès, the stupid grin on his face returning once again. To Washu it reminded her of Clay's grin which was equally stupid looking though the image of him rotting away in a Galaxy Police prison was more than enough recompense for the previous memory.

"Very good then, the deal is completed." The leader tossed the envelope to one of his men. "The keys are in the van."

Dantès said nothing in return, only giving a slight nod of acknowledgment before heading towards the direction of the van.

"However…" said the leader as he pulled a gun from his suit jacket and cocked it. "You're worth far more than the little portion you gave us. Wanted by Interpol, the American CIA , the Russian FSB and a number of third world war lords as well. The amount of offers we'll get for handing you over should be very interesting... "

Dantès didn't even give the man the chance to finish his sentence before in one blurry motion he pulled the handgun from his pocket, turned and fired. The shot went low with the bullet hitting the man in the gut before he collapsed onto the ground in great pain. The two men flanking Dantès hesitated as they were still processing what had just happened before one was shot in the head and fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes. The other one pointed his pistol at Dantès who quickly dropped his own gun and countered it, disarming the man before grabbing his out stretched arm and swinging it up and back over his shoulder. The man yelled in pain as he felt his bones break from his arm being pulled back in such an unnatural position before Dantès swung around behind him and forced him down onto his knees. Likewise, Dantès dropped down on his knees as well using the man as a shield and making himself a smaller target in the process. The other three remaining men began opening fire in a panic as they began advancing on Dantès in a loose formation, his captive's body absorbing the impacts of their shots. Dantès grabbed his gun off the floor and calmly but surely fired his remaining five shots back at his attackers four of which struck their targets, dropping them in quick succession. With the slide now locked back on an empty magazine and a faint trace of smoke billowing out of the barrel Dantès slowly stood up, releasing the now bullet riddled corpse he had used for cover and letting it hit the ground. He felt a sharp pain in his left shoulder, a bullet had hit him but it had gone right through making it a clean wound. Painfully he removed the empty magazine from the pistol and dropped it to the ground before putting in a fresh one and pulling back on the slide, releasing it and making the weapon ready once again.

He walked over to where the leader who was sprawled out on the ground, clutching his stomach in pain. He weakly raised his gun at Dantès who kicked it out of his hand before he could fire. Standing over him, Dantès pointed his own gun down at his now helpless opponent.

"I don't deserve this…to die like this," the man said with a shaking voice, the realization that his end was near. Panic and regret could be seen in eyes as he looked up at Dantès, his sunglasses having fallen off as he hit the ground when he was shot.

"You reap what you sow," said Dantès coldly, not giving even a single hint of remorse or compassion in his voice. His face was void of any emotions as he pointed his gun at the man's head.

"I'll see you in Hell," replied the leader in a final act of defiance before taking a deep breath as he prepared for oblivion.

"Yeah, you probably will."

Dantès looked him squarely in the eyes before he slowly squeezed the trigger and a single shot rang out across the empty space of the warehouse. He then made his way over to one of the other men he had killed, picking up the now blood stained envelope that held all the money he had given them to them before they had predictably betrayed him. Making his way back towards the white van he spotted one of the other men was still alive, moaning in pain on the ground as he desperately tried to get a firm hold of the gun in front of him. Without even thinking about it Dantès casually walked by and shot the man dead, as if he had just blown out a candle before leaving a room. He closed the back doors of the van before clambering into it and driving off, leaving the scene of death behind him.

Washu and Ryoko looked on the entire time is shock and disbelief. In the span of only a few minutes a simple exchange went from a curiosity to a bloody exposition of who Dantès really is. These two women were no strangers to battle or death by any means but nothing as intimate or up close like what they had just witnessed. Ryoko herself had killed some people in her time or at least ones that she could recall. Kagato's control over her at the time of her enslavement made it difficult to remember much of anything that she did and for the most part she was thankful for it. She had no desire to relive the horrors she had inflicted on others in his name. Most of her victims had been Juraian soldiers, GP officers and mercenaries sent after her and Kagato. He himself had destroyed 28 planets in the search of what he called "the greatest power in the universe." After scouring a planet's ruins he would destroy it whether it was inhabited or not least someone replicate his research. However Ryoko seeing this man being virtually murdered, unable to fight back had shaken her somewhat. In her defense she'd never seen anyone shot and killed with an Earth weapon before which was a far bloodier affair than a typical beam weapon or one of her own energy blasts.

In Washu's own mind she used logic and reasoning to understand Dantès reaction to the leader's betrayal. It was neither unexpected nor not understandable to defend one's self in such a situation but Dantès cold and unforgiving way of dealing with it was disturbing to her. When he had shot the leader as he lay helpless on the ground she had turned away, unable to witness his death. However seeing his cavalier attitude after the act and the way he casually killed the other man had stuck a cord deep within her. He didn't show any regret or sorrow concerning his own actions in the way Tenchi did after killing Kagato despite the fact the bastard deserved it. Tenchi had been the one to rectify her sins in the end and also saved her in the process, giving her a new life and a new family. In a way Dantès reminded her of Kagato in how he seemed to simply turn off his emotions though Kagato had always lacked them to begin with, having once said that emotions were "worth nothing more than dust."

She thought back to how only a few hours before when Dantès had placed his hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes, telling her not to fear him and that he would "never harm her or allow he to be harmed." His face had been kind and understanding then so she knew some part of him that was human and not solely the brutal man she had just witnessed. It seemed like a distant memory whereas now she was genuinely afraid and concerned for the safety of her new found family and would now have to act accordingly. When he returned they would confront him and do as necessary even if that meant destroying him in the process should he resist, a thought she did not relish in the slightest. She would prefer to simply capture him, erasing his memories of her and the house like originally planned before turning him in to the proper authorities and letting them deal with it. She had wanted to know more about him and now finally had her answer.

"Ryoko…," Washu started to say as continued watching the monitor. "When he comes back I'm going to need you to assist me in detaining him."

"You leave it to me, I'll take care of the bastard," replied Ryoko as she punched her fist into her open palm.

"No." Washu turned to face her. "I want him alive and unharmed if possible. You're simply going to capture him and then bring him to me. I'll take care of the rest."

Ryoko gave Washu a puzzled look before she responded. "Are you kidding me!? Didn't you see what he did? He just killed six men like they were nothing and now he's coming back here with a van full of weapons!"

"Yes I saw what he did and he'll answer for it but not to you. Once we've captured him we'll turn him in to the proper authorities and it'll be their problem."

"What the hell is this?" asked Ryoko, dumbfounded by her so-called mother's reaction. "Why are you protecting him?"

"I'm not protecting him." Washu turned her attention back to the monitor and the drone following Dantès, continuing to observe the developing situation. "I simply want to avoid any further bloodshed."

"Don't give me that crap. I saw you two together early that one morning and then again this afternoon. What's going on between you two? And what's all that talk about sharing dreams or nightmares or whatever?"

"Nothing is going on between us," denied Washu. "And my dreams are none of your business."

"Do you really expect me to buy that?" asked Ryoko, completely unbelieving of Washu's answer. "And considering what I just saw whatever has happened between you two _is_ my business at this point."

Washu said nothing in return, now only concentrating on getting everything ready for Dantès capture as she furiously typed away at her terminal.

"What are you fucking him? Is that it?"

"I think if I was I'd know it. And even if I was it wouldn't make any difference now, he's simply a threat that needs to be neutralized. Now stop wasting time and help me get ready."

Outside the Masaki home however there was an even greater threat growing. In the outskirts of the forest an elite team of men and women was gathering, having trained for years for the mission they were about to carry out. They had studied their targets and perfected their strategy for neutralizing them and now it was time to strike. Looking out at the house from a concealed position, Ridda continued to monitor the situation. The one called Dantès had left in a hurry, off to where and to do what he did not care. It was simply one less obstacle to deal with at this point and he had served an even greater purpose which was to distract the two greatest threats they faced, Ryoko and Washu. However they were also still the primary targets in which Ridda and his team had been tasked to capture at all costs along with the gems and Ryo-Ohki but for now they would concentrate on capturing the weakest ones which were to serve as the bait. The first crown prince of Jurai, Yosho also going under the name Katsuhito had also left earlier that morning on business but could return at any moment. The one called Noboyuki had just arrived back at the house from his day job and was currently helping Mihoshi tend to Sasami's recent but also incapacitating injury. Sasami's eldest sister Ayeka, the first crown princess of Jurai was confirmed to be back on the planet Jurai at the moment along with the one called Noike. The most profound threat perhaps, the one called Tenchi (though he certainly didn't seem like it judging from his profile) was currently attending the Galaxy Academy off world. All that was left was the old man whose name they had never even bothered to learn and was by no means a threat.

 _"This is just too perfect,"_ Ridda thought to himself, not quite believing his luck. _"The biggest obstacles we thought we'd face are nowhere to be seen, the weakest ones of the group are right in front of me and the Jurai princess has been brought down by a simple broken foot."_

As Ridda continued to look on his second in command, Miranda came running up as fast as she could. She was originally from the planet Seniwa, the same planet as Mihoshi. She was a pretty girl with dark skin and white hair though looks can be deceiving; she was one of the greatest close combat experts to ever come out of the Galactic Army, the Galactic Union's military arm and opposite number of the Galaxy Police. She had been dishonorably discharged and arrested after it was discovered she was organizing and running underground fights. Blood sport for money. He had personally recruited her, broken her out of prison and since then bedded her. Though they had become lovers it did not impair or affect their professional relationship in the slightest and they had worked hard to conceal it from their teammates and their master who would no doubt disapprove, seeing it as a weakness and compromising to the group overall.

"What do you have to report, Miranda?" asked Ridda as he turned to meet her.

"The security system has been taken care of," she replied. "They won't know what hit em until it's too late."

"Excellent." He was more than pleased with their progress thus far. "Gather the team, we're moving out earlier than anticipated. Once we begin the operation activate the shield, we can't have them getting away."

"Yes sir!" said Miranda in acknowledgment as she snapped to attention, giving a firm salute before heading out to carry on with her orders.

Ridda turned his attention back to the house and the now setting sun. Soon it would be night and in within hours the gemstones along with their owners would soon be in their hands. Nothing could stop them now…or at least they thought nothing could stop them. Soon they would realize just how gravely mistaken they really were.

Meanwhile as the sun set Durante was getting ever closer to the edge of the Masaki property line and the location where he had chosen to hide the van along with its contents. As he drove he rubbed his wounded shoulder which had just healed not too long ago but was still very sore. He would move out early in the morning, leaving Nicolai behind at the house along with the letter he had written explaining things to him and the others. He had also written a separate letter meant solely for Washu as well seeing as how he was not expecting to speak to her again given her avoidance of him in the last couple of weeks. He was surprised by her sudden change of heart and regretted he had cut their conversation so short but in the end he knew it was for the best. What kind of life could he even hope to offer her? A life on the run and of constant violence and pain? Plus she was still mortal and eventually time would claim her in the end. No, it was far too late to turn back now. He was completely committed to his mission and its end result. Tomorrow would be his last day on this earth and he was truly glad of it. He was adrift in a sea of blood and he wanted it to end. Tomorrow would be the final battle.

Soon he turned off the main road and onto a trail leading deep into the forest, coming to the location he had chosen to hide his equipment and weapons until the morning. It was a mile or so from the house, far enough away to keep it from prying eyes but still close enough to get to it in a hurry. As he got out of the van and opened the back to do a full inspection of his weapons and gear he felt as though eyes were on him, observing his actions. He also heard a faint humming noise come from directly behind him and with a sudden motion he turned around and swatted at the air, his fist striking something hard though he did not see it. Whatever he had hit he had done so with such force it went flying into a nearby tree, splintering it upon impact. A strange piece of machinery had fallen to the ground, smashed to pieces and the internal electronics now exposed and short circuiting. It was phasing in and out from the visual spectrum, seemingly disappearing and reappearing again. Some sort of camouflage or cloaking that seemed to bend light itself. He walked over to it, picking up the main pieces and examining them carefully. It was impossibly light in weight but also very strong in structure. On one piece he found what looked to be some sort of maker's mark or symbol, a red crab.

"What the hell is this!?" Durante said aloud to himself, genuinely confused and alarmed at the piece of technology he held in his hands. He had never seen or even heard of anything like it before and it seemed far too advanced for the current state of the modern world. It was out of a science fiction movie or one of those video games kids these days wasted their time on. Suddenly a flash appeared over head in the sky and he looked up to see something that made him drop the pieces of metal in his hand as well as his jaw. A curtain of light seemed to spread over the sky, forming the shape of a dome as is careened towards the ground before disappearing just behind him. Fascinated he walked over to where the wall of light had touched down before disappearing, slowly outstretching his hand to where the air seemed to be shimmering and was greeted by a sudden electric shock which blew him off his feet and onto the ground. Whatever it was it was energy in nature and was meant to keep people in or rather he presumed from escaping. As he got to his feet and continued to study the strange phenomena before he heard what sounded like explosions off in the distance. He turned to try and gauge where they were coming from before realizing it was in the direction of the Masaki house. The others were under attack, by whom or what he did now know. He then caught sight of something in the corner of his eye and jumped out of the way just in time before a sword came swinging down where he had just been standing.

He looked up to see his attacker, a figure clad in black armor and a helmet with a visor which obscured the face. In their right hand was a sword but it seemed to pulse with some kind of energy as it crackled off the face of the blade. Durante had never in his life seen such combat gear before but he didn't have time to worry about any of that now. He pulled out his pistol and fired three shots in quick succession at his new enemy only to watch in awe as the bullets were stopped dead in the air by an energy shield before falling harmlessly to the ground. His attacker seemed amused by his futile attempt at retaliation, giving a chuckle and saying something in a language Durante did not understand, the voice sounding mechanical and disembodied. The black clad warrior then charged at Durante with incredible force and speed, lunging at him with the strange sword that continued to writhe with energy and grazed part of his arm which burned and seared his skin. Durante desperately dodged their continuous attacks as he fired back at them with the gun in his hand but to no avail as his shots were again blocked by the shield. Durante realized his weapon was useless but he could not let up or he could very well be destroyed by this unknown weapon. Dropping the gun, he now resorted to using close combat techniques to fight back. The unknown warrior, with their sword at a high guard then swung the blade down at Durante with great force who in turn moved in closer and grabbed his opponent's hands, stopping the coming blow cold. The strength of his enemy was incredible as the pair continued their desperate tussle. The unknown warrior began to push the edge of their blade closer towards Durante's face before he finally stopped holding back and gradually began to overpower his attacker. Durante finally managed to push them off and grabbing their forearm flipped them him over his shoulder and onto their back with great force, making a small crater in the ground. Without any hesitation Durante turned to his stunned enemy and with his full strength brought his heel down upon on their neck, crushing it like a soda can. Durante breathed heavily as he looked down at his now dead and defeated opponent, still stunned at what had just transpired.

Curious he squatted down and removed the helmet from the body and revealed the face of his enemy at last, a woman. She was pale skinned with shimmering green hair, her face expressionless and her eyes vacant of life as they looked skyward. He was speechless, how could a mere woman be so powerful in terms of strength? It should not have even been a contest but yet for a moment her strength had caught him completely off guard. She had by no means been unskilled, just overconfident and it had cost her. It was a lesson Durante would do well to remember as he was guilty of the same crime. Most people on this planet were beyond weak compared to him with the exception of other Immortals and she could have easily destroyed him because of it as he did her. Durante was curious as to why his physical attacks had not been blocked by the shield; he now assumed it only deflected kinetic based weapons. To confirm this he picked up his gun and fired a shot and sure enough the still active shield stopped it. He was also interested in the sword she had used as well and tested it against the shield as well. He picked it up and it immediately hummed to life, the energy coming off the blade as it vibrated slightly in his hand. It was also incredibly light as he effortlessly swung it around like he was holding nothing but air. He then tested it against the shield on the body of his enemy and though it resisted at first with the right amount of strength it easily pierced through it and the armor beneath it. It was a gruesome experiment to be sure but he needed to know his enemy.

So far he had discovered that they were using technology far beyond anything he had ever seen or that he himself possessed. They were also very powerful in terms of strength and skill but also overconfident as well which would be his main advantage. Furthermore he knew he was most likely the more experienced combatant and also still physically superior given his latest engagement. Once he had bypassed their advanced defenses they could be killed like anyone else. The sword would most likely come in handy though it had been over a hundred years since he last used one in battle. He took the sheath for it off the back of the dead woman and put the sword in it before realizing how silent it was. He looked back over to the direction of the house where he had heard the explosions before being attacked and alarm now ran through his mind. In battle silence meant two things: there was a lull or the fight was over. He assumed the latter and made his way over to the van and ripped open the back doors. As he began grabbing weapons and equipment at a feverish pace he suddenly stopped for a moment. If he did this there was no telling what would happen and he may very well get the final battle he wanted before he could kill Muller. However the sense of alarm for the safety of the others at the house overrode the priority of his mission especially considering Nicolai was well past the age of being able to effectively fight back. He also recalled his words to Washu earlier that day when he had sworn to her he would never harm her or allow her to be harmed. Now those words would test him. Now was the familiar call to battle and as always Durante would answer. He geared up as quickly as he could and would take a full load out of weapons with him.

He grabbed the AK-47 and attached a GP-34 under-barrel grenade launcher to it along with one of the newest generation of red-dot sights, fixing it to the rifle. He hoped the steel core ammunition he was using for the rifle might give him the penetration he needed but if not there was always the 40mm grenades he would be using for the launcher. He filled magazines with ammunition as quickly as he could including a large drum magazine which was clunky and large though the increased capacity would no doubt come in handy. He put on his body armor and began putting AK magazines into the attached pouches along with 40mm grenades. He chose a highly customized model 1911 handgun as his sidearm, complete with a custom made slide and a highly luminous taclight attached to the picatinny rail underneath the slide assembly on the frame. He then took the sheathed sword and strapped it to his back before loading up a pack with as much ammunition as he could carry. When he was done loading all his weapons he donned a balaclava and a set of night vision goggles before setting set off into the night towards the house towards whatever fate was in store for him.


	5. Chapter IV - A Forlorn Hope

Washu stood there in utter disbelief at the now blacked out screen. How could Dantès have detected her drone? Whatever the reason it didn't matter now, she had already seen more than enough to determine the threat he represented was real and now she would task Ryoko with his retrieval. It would be simple, no excess force was needed or necessary as she would not stoop to his level nor did she have a desire to hurt him. Using the device Washu had given her Ryoko would use it to trap Dantès and nullify the threat he represents. It was essentially a gun that when fired would trap him in a solidifying gel that was all but unbreakable without the proper solvent to dissolve it. Washu had tested it on Ryoko when she had first developed it and not even she could break free from it so there was no doubt of its effectiveness. She had sent Ryoko on ahead with instructions to use the device on Dantès as soon as he entered the house which with her many skills and abilities should be an easy task to accomplish. No sooner had Washu thought this however than an alarm began blaring on her terminal. She quickly addressed it and was taken aback to see that her security system at the Masaki residence had been completely compromised.

 _"That's impossible,"_ Washu thought to herself. _"No one knows the contents of my system well enough to disable it except for…"_ Washu stopped her train of thought cold and felt a shiver go down her spine. _"No, there's no way it could be him_ ," she continued thinking to herself. " _Tenchi destroyed him back on the Soja along with the ship itself. He couldn't possibly have survived."_

But then no one else knew her security system as well as her except for Kagato as he had helped her develop it after all and knew all of its ins and outs. There was simply no other explanation for the current situation. Alarmed Washu quickly left her lab and made her way back to the house using the direct subspace corridor from the lab to the bottom floor closet underneath the stairs. As soon as she arrived back at the house and opened the door Washu was greeted by the sudden sound of charging beam weaponry as half a dozen figures clad in black armor surrounded and pointed their weapons at her. She immediately noticed the smoldering remains of what used to be the north side of the house, no doubt a result of Ryoko defending their home from these intruders but had stopped for some reason. Soon it became clear why. On their knees and with their hands over their heads Noboyuki and Mihoshi were helpless as their captors pointed their weapons at the back of their heads. Sasami was helpless as well with her broken foot and way still lying down on the couch in a similar situation with another figure clad in black armor hovered over her with a ready weapon. Worst of all it appears that they had used the device meant for Dantès to capture and detain Ryoko who was trapped in a bubble of green gel with her head poking out just above it. She had an enraged look on her face and was trying to speak but her captors had gagged her and only muffled sounds could be heard.

"Welcome professor, or should I say Chousin? I forget which one is the more appropriate title," said a voice before the group of men parted and allowed a man to come forward, all the while continuing to keep their weapons trained on her.

"If you know who and what I am then you're aware of what I can do as well," replied Washu with a menacing look on her face. "Release them…now."

"I'm afraid that's not going to happen," replied the man. "Our master has given us very explicit orders for your capture along with your creations and those gems of yours. The others are desired as well but not required so it's in your best interest to do as we say."

"And if I refuse to hand them over?" Washu remained cool and level headed, seemingly unphased by the present threat she now faced. Already she was looking for a way out of this situation and weighing her options.

"Then I cannot guarantee that your friends and family will make it through this alive," the man replied before gesturing with his hand over to his cohorts who in turn pressed the barrels of their guns against the heads of Mihoshi and Noboyuki, ready to fire the moment the command was given.

As a goddess who helped create the known universe Washu could easily destroy these trespassers and then restore Mihoshi and Noboyuki back to life in an instant if they were killed. Without all of the gems in her possession however it was impossible for her to use her powers to their full extent and the release of such power could very well destroy the entire planet. Ryoko who was still trapped had two of them imbedded in her wrists while Tenchi had maintained one in the master key which he had taken with him to the Galaxy Academy. For now she was limited in what she could do without endangering the others and had no desire to seem them harmed or killed regardless if she could restore them or not. Tsunami for the same reasons would not come forth or endanger her avatar Sasami while Tokimi was busy in a higher dimension doing who knows what. Until she could think of something Washu was stuck and had to play along.

"So what will it be?" asked the man with a smirk on his face.

Washu sighed heavily. "What is it you want?"

"As I said before we want you, your gems and your creations," answered the man. "You will then accompany us back to our ship without incident. If you refuse, they die. If you try anything to get away, they die. If they try to help you in any way I deem unsatisfactory, they die. Do you understand?"

Washu did not reply, she was incensed and her face along with her body language reflected it as her clenched fists began to turn her knuckles white. The leader, impatient then stepped forward and looked her dead in the face.

"I _said_ do you understand?" He looked her straight in the eye, knowing he had her beat.

"Yes…I understand." Washu was doing her best to hide her frustration and rage.  
As the two continued squaring off at one another a ruckus broke off the contest as another of the black clad soldiers came walking through the foyer with Nicolai in front of him. He struck the old man from behind with the butt of his weapon, sending him tumbling to the ground in pain.

"Get moving old man!" shouted the soldier as he kicked Nicolai back to the ground as he painfully tried to pick himself up.

"Stop that, leave him alone!" said Washu as she tried to make her way over to help him but was instead blocked by a wall of guns.

Nicolai again picked himself up off the floor, painfully rising to his feet and standing up straight before turning back to face his abuser. He then muttered something in his native language to the soldier who didn't understand what he was saying. In an instant Nicolai backhanded the soldier across the face and sent him tumbling against the wall to the amusement of his colleagues who began to laugh at his misfortune. The soldier was surprised at this sudden act of defiance but quickly recovered from the brief assault and raised his weapon to shoot Nicolai before having it struck down by the leader before he could fire.

"There'll be no killing unless I give the order to do so," he said sternly.

"But Commander Ridda he…"

"Never mind what he did, just get the old man over there with the others in one piece," interrupted Ridda. "And if you disobey my orders again you'll be the one laying on the floor only you won't be getting up afterwards when I'm done with you."

Washu made a mental note of the commander's name but also of the courage displayed by Nicolai. She watched as he quietly made his own way over to Sasami before taking a seat on the floor and leaning up against the couch. Washu could tell he was confused as well as scared by what was going on but he was keeping it together as best he could. She knew from the others that he was a war veteran though from which war she did not know. It would explain his ability to remain calm in so stressful a situation.

"That's all of them except for the creature known as Ryo-Ohki and the other Earthling," said the soldier who was still angry from his earlier humiliation.

"What's being done about that?" asked Ridda, his impatience becoming more evident.

"We currently have a team out searching for the creature while Silva took off on her own to go take care of that other Earthling."

Ridda didn't like what he heard. The objective was to get them all in one swift strike and not waste time running around. The more time they wasted chasing around and trying to capture Ryo-Ohki the more opportunity there was for something to go wrong. Silva was just as much a concern however. The woman was skilled but also reckless and not to mention hot-headed. He was not the least bit surprised to hear she ran off on her own. Though he had ordered everyone at the house be captured alive the loss of one meaningless Earthling meant nothing to him. In the meantime he had his men escort Washu under heavy guard into the living room with the others and made them all sit on the couches. All but Ryoko who was stuck where she was.

"Commander Ridda, come in!" said a sudden, panicked voice over the communicator.

"This is Ridda, what's your situation Miranda?"

"We just found Silva…she's been killed." Miranda's response was grim.

"What!?" exclaimed Ridda. "How? Was it the Earthling?"

"We don't know sir, we just….," Miranda started to say before being suddenly cut off.

In the distance a series of explosions was clearly heard followed by sporadic gunfire which made everyone jump. Ridda's men responded by taking up positions near the doors and windows, covering every approach possible to the house while a few remained behind with weapons drawn on their hostages. Over the communicator through what could be deciphered from the garbled transmissions Ridda could hear the chaos unfolding on the other end. Shouts and screams followed by the clear discharging of beam weaponry could be heard as well followed by another explosion and more gunfire from a class of weapon he did not recognize by sound alone. Soon the echoing sound of gunfire gradually died down and an uneasy silence eased back over the house and fields of the Masaki property.

"Miranda answer me! Come in dammit!" Ridda yelled over the communicator but he was met only with static. He then heard someone pick-up the communicator on the other end and began to speak in a language he did not understand. It was loud enough to where Nicolai who still sitting nearby could clearly hear it and a sly smile appeared across his face. When the voice had finished speaking the line went dead, the communicator on the other end was disconnected. It was at this point Nicolai began to laugh aloud much to the wonder and perplexment of everyone around him before he began to cough violently due to the cancer eating away at his lungs.

"And just what's so funny old man?" inquired Ridda.

Nicolai did not answer him, only staring at him in confusion as he did not understand what he was saying.

"Answer me!" Ridda pulled out his pistol and pointed it at Nicolai's head who in turn gave him a cold stare.

"He doesn't understand what you're saying," said Washu. "They don't have universal translators on this world."

Ridda pointed his gun at her before he replied, "Then fix it so he can understand me."

Washu got up from the couch, opened her terminal and began typing frantically as Nicolai looked on in wonder and amazement at what she was doing. Two guards flanked her on either side, weapons trained on her head if she tried anything while Ridda reminded her again what would happen to the others should she try anything. Within a few minutes Washu had designed and built a simple wearable translator before pulling it out of subspace. She took it from the black hole and walked over to Nicolai who recoiled in fear as she tried to put it on his hear.

"Don't be afraid, I won't hurt you," she said in his language before giving him a gentle smile. "This device will allow you to understand what they are saying."

Unsure of what to make of it Nicolai nodded slowly before Washu put it on for him and turned it on.

"Can you understand me now, old timer?" asked Ridda.

"Yes!" said Nicolai with amazement. "Yes I can understand you! What an amazing piece of…"

"Enough about that," interjected Ridda. "I want to know what you heard over the communicator."

"And why in the hell should I tell you anything?"

Ridda pointed his gun back at Nicolai. "Because if you don't I'll kill you where you sit."

Nicolai chuckled, seemingly amused at the threat. "Go ahead, I'm already dead anyway. The cancer in my lungs killed me long ago."

"Fair enough, then I'll kill Miss Mihoshi there instead." Ridda gestured to one of his men who grabbed Mihoshi and threw her off the couch before pointing a gun to her head as she began to cry out in fear. Noboyuki tried in vain to stop him before he was hit over the head with the butt of a rifle by one of the other soldiers, being knocked senseless to the ground.

"Stop!" yelled Nicolai as he stood up. "I'll tell you, just stop this!"

Ridda called off his men and allowed Washu to attend to Noboyuki who was bleeding from his forehead while Mihoshi sat-up on the floor, shaken but still maintaining her composure.

"He was quoting the Bible, Revelations," started Nicolai as Ridda and everyone else listened intently to his words. "Behold the pale horse. The man who sat on him was Death…and Hell followed with him."

* * *

Durante sweated and grunted in pain as his wound struggled to heal while he reloaded his weapon. There was no blood as the beam from the strange weapon had punched straight through his armor and cauterized the tissue around the entry and exit areas. He had been lucky to stumble across the patrol before doubling back to set up an ambush. He studied them at first observing their weapons and armor before they came across the van and the body of the fallen woman. As they began to report in and became distracted by their recent find Durante took the opportunity to attack, wiping out half the squad with the first salvo of grenade rounds before reloading and opening fire with the AK. They were well trained and quickly recovered from the initial attack, refusing to panic and focusing their fire in the direction of their attacker. Durante immediately took notice of the fact one of his shots had bypassed the shield of one of the soldiers via the visor of their helmet, killing them instantly. By pure chance he had discovered a weakness and adjusted his fire in turn to take advantage of it. Calmly he took steady aim with his rifle as beams flew all around him and began taking precise shots in return, eventually replicating the previous hit and dropping another enemy to the ground.

Durante spotted what he made out to be the leader issuing out orders and began focusing his fire on her before a beam struck him in the shoulder, the pain reminiscent of a glowing hot spear piercing the flesh. As he stumbled back the leader and her team began advancing on his position, closing the distance quickly before she was already on him. She drew her sword and took a swipe at Durante who in turn dropped his rifle and drew the sword he had captured from before. His opponent was highly skilled and he struggled against her as he blocked and parried. A familiar feeling began to wash over him, one of excitement as the blood lust of close combat began to overtake him. There was something about fighting with a sword in his hand that a gun could never replicate. As the battle between the two raged the remaining subordinates of the leader joined in the melee and Durante began to lash out in all directions as he lost himself in the moment of fighting multiple opponents. The excitement, chaos and the sting of battle enveloped his senses as he slipped into a stark rage, blood drunk. He dodged, ducked lunged and parried as he began to down every man who stood before him in flurry of steel and blood. Two of them then broke off, running away to save their own necks. Now only the leader remained as she desperately tried in vain to counter Durante's renewed attack. He seemed possessed by some unknown force, his strength and speed unnaturally strong and quick as Miranda seemed unable to gain an upper hand. However she was no pushover and eventually spotted a mistake in one of Durante's attacks and exploited it. She was able to throw Durante back and onto the ground before moving in for the killing blow but was instead met by the sight of Durante grabbing the primitive rifle lying next to him and opened fire, driving her back with a storm of bullets as they struck her shield before launching a grenade round which struck Miranda at point blank range. She was sent flying back into a nearby tree, the force of the explosion being nullified by her shield before it overloaded and failed as pieces of shrapnel peppered her face and body.

She was dazed as she painfully forced herself up, sword still in hand before a spray of gunfire made her drop back to the ground. When the firing stopped she looked up to see Durante standing over her with a rifle, his face stained with blood and his eyes ablaze with a menacing stare. Miranda shot up and tried to lunge at Durante with her sword but was stopped, Durante side stepping the attack and grabbing her hand before clamping down hard, breaking it and forcing her to drop her sword. Grabbing her by the throat she was lifted off the ground by Durante who began to squeeze the life out of her as she desperately tried to loosen his grasp so she could breathe. She soon lost consciousness before Durante regained his self-control and dropped the woman to the ground, realizing he needed her alive rather than dead. As he calmed himself Durante heard the crackle of a voice from the communicator on the unconscious woman. He took it off her ear and listened before uttering the words that would soon strike fear into all those that heard them. In the meantime he would see to the woman and extract any information he could out of her once she had recovered. By the time he was done she would wish he had killed her.

Back at the house Nicolai's translation had not fallen on deaf ears. Ridda's second in command along with the squad she was leading was out of communication and presumed destroyed. In his heart he felt anguish and despair at the loss of the woman he had grown to respect and above all desire more than anything. However his outward appearance showed no indication of it whatsoever and he maintained his composure in front of the rest of his men. He grabbed Nicolai by the collar, bringing him face to face.

"Who's out there!?" demanded Ridda. "How many men?"

"Men?" said Nicolai. "There are no men, just a man."

"You expect me to believe a single man, a mere Earthling wiped out an entire squad of my men!?"

"Earthling?" Nicolai was confused by the statement. "Just where are all you people from exactly?"

Ridda ignored the question. "I said I want to know who is out there. Now what am I dealing with?"

"You are dealing with a man whom I can best describe as being…a force of nature," started Nicolai as Ridda released his grip. "During the war on the Eastern Front I fought with him side by side against the fascists and came to know who and exactly what he is."

"And _who_ is he exactly?" Out of the corner of his eye Ridda took notice of the fact Washu seemed to be listening in on what the old man was saying as she treated Noboyuki's head wound. He glanced over at her and she immediately turned her head away before he turned his attention back to Nicolai.

"He is a veteran of a thousand wars and the thousands of battles that went with them." Nicolai wore a solemn look on his face. "I'm telling you this for your own good. Take what's left of your men and leave this place or it is here that you'll meet your end."

Ridda's men began to laugh aloud after hearing this, not taking it seriously in the slightest. Ridda however did take it seriously as his entire squad was still missing. He knows what he heard over the communicator and knew it was entirely possible what the old man way saying to be true. Washu and the others were also listening in on the conversation and they couldn't really believe or understand what Nicolai was saying.

"You're senile," answered Ridda. "You expect me to believe such nonsense? For all we know your man was killed and the communications were just knocked out."

"You can't kill what cannot be killed," replied Nicolai with the sound of frustration in his voice from being mocked.

"Sure thing old timer, whatever you say!" laughed the soldier who earlier had beat on Nicolai.

Nicolai turned to the man with wild eyes, "Shut up you damn fool, you know not of what I speak!"

The soldier, infuriated at this insult lost his temper and bum rushed Nicolai, tackling him into the ground and beating on him with his fists until Ridda threw him off. Nicolai lay on the ground, his face bloodied and bruised he painfully picked himself up off the ground before he started laughing aloud.

"You still don't get it do you?" he started to say weakly as he looked back at the soldier with an icy stare. "He'll kill you all. That's what he does, that's all he does! You can't stop him! He'll wade through you, reach down your throats and pull your hearts out!"

Nicolai lost control and attacked the soldier in retaliation for his cruelty, grabbing and wrestling with him for his gun. Nicolai was easily thrown off by the soldier and shot before stumbling back and falling to the ground. The smell of burning flesh filled the room and smoke could be seen emanating from the glowing hole in his chest.

"No!" yelled Sasami as she tried to get up from the couch but the soldier standing over her shoved her back down. Washu and Mihoshi got up and ran over to Nicolai who was writhing on the ground in pain. His breathing was heavy and Washu could see why as she inspected the wound. The beam had gone right through his heart and she knew there was nothing she could do for him.

"Nicolai, Nicolai! Can you hear me!?" said Mihoshi. "Why did you do that!?"

Nicolai coughed up some blood before he replied, "It's…it's the duty of a soldier to protect the helpless. These people are no better than… the fascists I faced in the war and they must be fought without hesitation or mercy."

"I've heard enough," said Ridda who was unsympathetic to Nicolai's plight. "Contact the ship and tell them to send the reinforcements. We're going to hunt this bastard down and vaporize his ass. Then we're going to find that creature."

"Your task…will not be an easy one," replied Nicolai, the unmistakable sound of defiance echoing in his wavering voice. "Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle hardened. He will fight savagely and accept nothing less than full victory. In short… you're all going to die here today."

Ridda paid no attention to the dying man's words, turning back to his men and planning the deployment of the reinforcements he was calling in from orbit. He was determined to fulfill his mission and nothing would stop him, not even some supposed "veteran of a thousand wars". He dismissed it as the mere delusions of an old man and walked away, seeing to the task at hand and leaving Nicolai to his fate. Mihoshi held his hand, comforting Nicolai as his breathing began to slow. Washu could only look on, helpless to do anything for the poor, brave man. Here a mere, lone Earthling had stood up to these aggressors and had paid for it with his life. She admired his courage but blamed herself for his fate. Her sins had once again returned to visit her and now all that she loved and cared for along with the innocent were paying for it.

"I'm sorry to say this will be my first and…last time getting to actually talk with you lovely ladies," Nicolai said weakly to Mihoshi.

"It's my fault this happened to you," said Washu with a guilt ridden face. "If it wasn't for me, none of this would be happening."

"Don't blame yourself," replied Nicolai as he looked over at Washu. "I chose my own path…and it led me to this and I am truly glad of it. I'd rather die on my feet defending others…than sick and alone in a bed. Now it'll be up to Durante to do what…I could not and he will succeed where…I have failed."

"Durante? So he does have a real name instead of that false one he's been using from that book," replied Washu.

"I can see now…why he likes you so much, as intelligent as you are…beautiful."

"I'm sorry to say the feeling isn't mutual. The man's no different than this lot. He's nothing more than a killer; I've seen what he's capable of."

Nicolai could see from the look on Washu's face that she was not lying. How she could know or have possibly seen such a thing he did not know but that seemed to matter little now as darkness began to take him.

"Do not…be so quick to judge…what you don't truly know or understand," replied Nicolai as his breathing continued to become more heavy and slow. "That man has endured more suffering than…you or anyone else can possibly imagine and now he's…your only chance. He'll come for you…and protect you like I know he will."

"How do you know?"

"Because I know him as well as he knows…and cherishes you," said Nicolai before he began before coughing violently. "You that…that lovely woman from his dreams he spoke of so often during the war in those…darkest and bleakest of moments we both shared."

"I don't understand." Washu was confused by his words. "How can he possibly know me from so long ago? I wasn't even on this planet yet. Just how old is he and how long have these dreams of his persisted?"

"I see, so you people…aren't from here at all, how…fascinating. I don't know how old for…sure but I know you…you have always been there in his dreams. You've been the only source of light in his soul… and I sense you will be the one…to…to save what's left of it…"

Nicolai began to drift off, apparently becoming more delusional as Mihoshi and Washu struggled to keep him conscious.

"Miss Washu…you…you mustn't allow Durante to go through with it…" Nicolai said weakly. "You must…you must save…him."

"Go through with what?" asked Washu. "Wait, Nicolai I don't understand!"

As Nicolai looked at her and struggled to answer his labored breathing slowed and eventually stopped, his eyes widening as his head canted over. His grip on Mihoshi's hand relaxed and loosened before falling free. Tears streamed down Mihoshi's face as she watched the man pass away, something she had never experienced before first hand. Washu just stared quietly at Nicolai's lifeless body, not giving any emotional response. It was something she has always struggled with ever since she was a young girl. She simply did not cry though that was to say she had not done so before, she simply dissected and analyzed everything. Breaking it down and building it back up until she came to a conclusion. Nicolai chose to act and his death was the end result. As Washu thought on this a single tear curiously rolled down her left cheek before she wiped it away with her hand. She looked at her wet hand and wondered why. Was it for Nicolai's actual passing or perhaps at the fact she still felt responsible for his death? Or maybe it was that if she did see Dantès again, no Durante that she would have to be the one to break the news to him? That is if she ever did see him again.

It was at this point Washu decided something had to be done, despite the risk. If she didn't someone else might meet with a similar fate. She analyzed the situation and began memorizing the exact locations of everyone in the room. Ridda and his men were distracted, thinking she was still attending to Nicolai and too busy calling for their reinforcements. There was no way she could get to the lab, there were far too many of them guarding the main door and even if she could get everyone up to the other subspace portal in Tenchi's room they would be on them in moments. Her best chance was to get everyone as far from the house as possible before the reinforcements showed up. If Durante had indeed destroyed the squad that was searching for Ryo-Ohki then they would be safe. Hopefully she was somewhere safe as well until they could all be reunited. What she was worried about was running into Durante who at this point was still an unknown and may be as much of a threat to them as their current antagonists. As she continued to observe Ridda and the others she at last saw an opening, the guards becoming distracted by Ryoko whose gag had come loose and she was going on a tirade of how she was going to destroy them and so forth. Washu opened her terminal and quickly began to type away before one of the guards took notice. Before he could stop her she hit the final key stroke and the power in the house began to fluctuate. The lights flickered and then failed. In an instant Washu and the others disappeared in a blinding flash of light.

* * *

Washu and the others were instantly transported to a far off part of the Masaki property but were still trapped by the shield wall. The teleportation had been far from perfect as it had been done off the cuff so they were far from where she had planned them to be. They were however safe for the moment and the darkness of night would give them some much needed cover.

"Well that was nauseating," said Noboyuki as he finished vomiting, wiping his mouth with his hand. "Now what?"

"Now get me the hell out of this stuff!" yelled Ryoko who was struggling to get free from her slimy, green prison.

"Calm down Ryoko," replied Washu as she typed on her terminal, the warm glow illuminating her face as she brought up the solvent from subspace to free her daughter. Washu applied it to Ryoko and everyone watched as the chemical reaction ate away at the green goo and set her free, albeit covered in a slimy residue.

"What do we do now?" asked Sasami.

"We go back there and take care of business!" replied Ryoko as she attempted to wring out the green residue from her clothing.

"No," said Washu. "We can't just rush in; we have to come up with a plan."

"What plan!?" shouted Ryoko, still angry and humiliated from being captured. She blamed her comfortable life here at the Masaki residence, convinced the last five years had made her soft and slow. Before Washu could even answer the unmistakable sound of a beam weapon charging up could be heard.

"Move and you're all dead," said a voice from behind. "Slowly turn around and put your hands up where I can see them."

They had been caught off guard yet again and had no choice but to comply as Sasami was still lying on the ground, unable to walk on her foot and Noboyuki was still suffering from his earlier injury as well. Ryoko however had no intention of being taken prisoner twice in the same night and took a step forward before a beam landed right at her feet, glassing over the dirt where the shot had impacted.

"The next one goes between the eyes," said the voice from the darkness. "Now get your hands up!"

Ryoko reluctantly complied with the others as two soldiers clad in black armor came forward before suddenly raising their weapons. Before Ryoko could do anything in response however two shots suddenly rang out, the noise deafening and causing her and the other's ears to ring. The two soldiers in front of them tumbled to the ground like rag dolls as each received a bullet through the visor of their helmets. Ryoko and the others turned to see a figure standing behind them, rifle raised with the faint scent of gunpowder still circulating in the air. With his weapon still raised he passed through the group and approached the two downed men, making sure they were dead. Once he confirmed the kills he turned back around to face Ryoko and the others, taking off the night vision goggles and mask they were wearing to reveal their face.

"Dantès!?" said Noboyuki in surprise.

"You can put your hands down now," said Durante as he walked forward to meet them, his weapon pointed to the ground as he carried it.

"His name isn't Dantès," said Washu as she approached him. "It's Durante."

Durante stopped in his tracks before looking at her for a moment. "How long have you known?"

"I know you've been lying to us since day one. You're not the only one here who reads books; maybe choose a less obvious name next time. And Nicolai is the one who told us your real name among other things."

Durante looked around for his friend before realizing he was nowhere to be seen.

"Where is Nicolai?" asked Durante.

Washu lowered her eyes and a faint expression of sadness crossed her face and it was then Durante knew Nicolai's fate.

"How did it happen?"

Washu opened her mouth to reply but the words did not emerge. She didn't have the heart to tell him what had transpired.

"He…he stood up to them and tried to help us," answered Mihoshi as he approached him with a similar sad expression to Washu's. "Then they shot him. We were with him at the end and he told us about you before he passed."

Durante said nothing in return, his eyes looking at the ground as he quietly accepted the news of his friend's passing which was better than what he could have hoped for. He could not bear the thought of Nicolai wasting away in a bed waiting as the cancer ate away at his lungs until death finally came for him. He was proud to hear Nicolai had fought to the very end. The silence was then broken by a rustling sound coming from behind the group and Durante snapped back to the situation at hand. The lament for his dead friend would have to wait, these people were still alive and he felt responsible for seeing to their safety. Durante walked passed Washu and Mihoshi and retrieved a bound and gagged woman from the darkness, dragging her across the ground and tossing her into the center of the group. Her face was bruised and stained with dried blood and the fear in her eyes could clearly be seen.

"I couldn't get anything out of her," said Durante. "She speaks a language I've never heard before and I've been around long enough to know most of them at this point. Their weapons and gear are things I have seen before and just now you lot showed up out of nowhere. I also saw Washu pulling up some sort of interface out of thin air and it's obvious at this point they want you for some reason. Now you're going to tell me who you all really are and why they're after you."

"We could ask you the same thing," replied Washu. "I saw what you did to those men in that warehouse and I know about the van as well."

"How could you possibly know about…?" started Durante before he came to a realization. "That machine from earlier, it was yours wasn't it? You were spying on me."

"I was protecting my family and from what I've seen you're no better the people who are after us. Nothing but a killer."

"That's according to which end of the gun you're on. I killed those men who got the drop on you and I heard no objections then."

"That was different."

"How so? Because it was your life that was in danger instead of mine?"

"Can we _not_ do this now?" interjected Ryoko. "Those reinforcements will be here soon and they'll be looking for us while we're out here in the open listening to the lovers quarrel."

"We're not lovers!" Washu and Durante yelled back at her in unison, not noticing the echo.

"Ryoko is right, we have to get moving," said Noboyuki.

"Not until we take care of Sasami," replied Washu as she brushed passed Durante and started tending to her injury. Durante looked on in wonder and amazement as she pulled out a device seemingly from thin air and began scanning Sasami's foot as a faint light was projected over the injured area. He watched as she got up, putting her full weight on her foot and began to walk around as if the injury had never happened.

"Thank you Washu!" exclaimed Sasami as she ran over and gave her a hug.

"You're welcome, now let's get moving. We have to find Ryo-Ohki and get to the shrine, I have another subspace portal to the lab there we can use to escape." Washu released her embrace and began to set off down the dirt road in the direction of the shrine.

"A portal?" said Durante, confused by the statement. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"We don't have time for a million questions," replied Washu. "We need to get out of here."

"Not yet," replied Durante as he walked over to Miranda who was still struggling on the ground.

"I need information on the enemy and until I can communicate with her I'm second guessing. If Nicolai was able to communicate with you then that means you must have had the means for him to do so. Now I need it."

Washu said nothing but in her mind thoughts were racing. She definitely didn't trust Durante and neither did the others but he had proven his worth so far and there was no doubt he knew what he was doing. He had managed to single-handedly engage and destroy an unknown and technologically superior enemy while capturing the leader alive. Information was needed on what exactly there were up against and he might prove useful as a tool so she and the others could get through this. Without a second thought she opened her terminal and reproduced the same device she used for Nicolai and tossed it to Durante.

"Attach it to your ear," said Washu as she folded her arms, curious to see what he would do next.

Durante slung his rifle over his shoulder and attached the device to his ear, unsure of what to expect. He then knelt down and removed the gag from the woman before he began to speak.

"Can you understand me?" Durante asked.

"Fuck you asshole," said Miranda before she spat on his face, confirming that communication had indeed been established.

Durante stood up and wiped the saliva from his face before he kicked her in the chest in response, breaking a couple of ribs. Miranda gasped for air as the wind was knocked out of her by his kick before she recovered and began to cough violently. The others looked on with uneasiness as Durante started his interrogation, noting that he didn't seemed bothered at inflicting pain on a helpless captive.

"Here's how this works. I ask you a question and I get an answer," started Durante as he knelt back down. "If you give me an answer I don't find satisfactory you receive pain in return. Understand?"

Miranda looked up at him with her glaring eyes that still were tearing up from the pain she received and nodded slightly. She was already broken from his last interrogation and just wanted it all to stop. She told Durante everything he wanted to know. Who they were, their overall basic mission to capture Washu and Ryoko, the number of personnel and even their extraction plan. It was a lot to take in at one time and Durante had a hard time processing the fact that the people he was with and the ones he was fighting were all really from outer space. Washu also pressed her for information about Kagato but Miranda fervently denied any knowledge of him. When Durante was done with her he stood up and drew his sidearm. He was about to shoot Miranda before Mihoshi stepped in front of him stopped him.

"Hey! Just what do you think you're doing!?" she exclaimed.

Durante was somewhat annoyed by her sudden interference. He had taken her for a naïve, empty-headed idiot but could see the seriousness in her face. He lowered his weapon.

"I got what I needed and now I need to clear up the loose end," replied Durante

"Loose end?" said Noboyuki with a certain amount of shock. "That "loose end" is a human being. She's completely defeated and is no threat to us. Just let her go."

"If I let her go she'll make her way back to the others and then lead them to us. If we take her with us she'll give away our position the first chance she gets and lead them to us," replied Durante. "She too much of a risk to be left alive, so she dies."

Suddenly with a fluid motion Washu stepped in and slapped Durante as hard as she could. She was completely disgusted by what he was saying and could stay silent no longer.

"Is it really so easy for you to take the lives of others!?" she yelled. "Have you no compassion or sense of morality!?"

Durante was taken aback by her sudden assault and rubbed his face before he responded, "This is war. There's no room for compassion or morality. You kill the enemy and move on."

"This isn't war it's murder," replied Ryoko who was also disturbed by his candor. "She can't even fight back. I mean look at her."

"Answer me! Is it that easy for you?" yelled Washu, the fire in her eyes all too apparent. Durante could see she really did care what happened to this person even though they were an enemy. It was her nature he supposed to be so compassionate.

Durante said nothing as he stared back at her, gauging her reaction. He then walked over to her and aggressively grabbed her hand, shoving the pistol into it and raising it up to his head. He stared directly into her eyes with the gun's barrel firmly pressed up against his temple.

"Do _you_ think it's so easy?" said Durante bleakly. "Is it so easy to pull the trigger from this close as they stare back at you? A whole person waiting to be destroyed, never to return?"

The look in his eyes was one of sadness and contempt but there was something else. He wanted to die; she could see it clear as day. Washu tried to pull her hand away but his grip clamped down tighter, his strength easily eclipsing her own as he forced her to grip the gun.

"Pull the trigger," said Durante as Washu refused and still attempted to pull away.

"I said pull that trigger and fire the fucking gun. It's that easy!" yelled Durante. She still refused and he eventually released his grip, taking the gun from her hand. He noticed the look of horror on her face and knew the experience was traumatic for her but he had made his point. The others looked at him with disbelief, not quite knowing what to say.

"Not so easy is it?" Durante said to Washu as he walked away and left her to process what had just happened. He made his way back over to Miranda and pointed the gun at her, his finger on the trigger and ready to fire. However Washu's words were still fresh in his mind and it made him think. Had it really become that easy for him? In truth over the long years it had simply become second nature for him to kill an enemy without thinking. Compassion and morality had no place on the battlefield; they were things that simply got in the way and got others killed. They were obstacles to be overcome and be done away with. Once a warrior had overcome these limitations he was that much more effective in combat. However as these unfamiliar, alien thoughts entered his mind he saw the true fear in the woman's eyes as he held the gun to her head. She was afraid to die while he so desperately desired it. The irony was not lost to him. He thought about the fact the others were all watching and could for the first time they could see who and what he really was. In truth Washu was right, he was just a killer. His whole life he had brought the sword, nothing more. Here and now though he could prove them wrong and do the decent thing for once. Durante's hand shook on the gun before putting it back on safe and lowering it. To their surprise he then holstered the pistol and pulled out a knife, taking a knee and cutting her leg restraints and allowing her to stand up.

"I want you to take a message back to them," he said to Miranda. "Tell them they have failed in their mission and I am _allowing_ them to leave. If they choose to accept my terms they can go freely. If they choose to pursue us however I will kill them all. Understand?"

Miranda nodded before Durante took a bandage from his medkit and applied it over her eyes as a blindfold. He cut her bonds and then lined her up on the road and sent her off in the direction of the house, telling her to remove the blindfold once she had counted to five hundred steps. He saw her off and then returned to the others who seemed even more confused than before. Washu looked at him wearily as he walked by before stopping just behind her.

"Like I said, not so easy. Now let's get moving. I'll take point." Durante put his night vision goggles back before heading down the road towards the shrine.

Before they set off Noboyuki retrieved the two beam rifles from the fallen men and handed one to Mihoshi, reminding her of their duty as Galaxy Police officers even though he was long since retired. She nodded and they took the trailing end of the group, following Durante as he led them on towards the shrine with his rifle in hand. They walked for a good while with Washu choosing to stay in the rear away from Durante as she was still coming to terms with her recent experience. She didn't understand how someone could be so ready to kill and yet be so eager to die. Ryoko eventually caught up with Durante who was farther ahead of the group, taking notice of the wound on his shoulder which was wrapped with a bandage.

"You got hit I see," said Ryoko.

"It's a scratch, nothing more," replied Durante.

"So why'd you do it?" asked Ryoko as she continued to walk beside him who seemed to ignore the fact she was still covered in the film left by the green goo.

"Do what?" Durante's mind was elsewhere as he continued to scan for threats.

"Why'd you let that woman go I mean? After that little speech and demonstration of yours earlier I thought you were going to kill her.

"Because I chose not to, that's why."

"No," replied Ryoko. "I think you did it because of what Washu said. She got to you."

"I did a cruel thing to her," confessed Durante. "But she and the rest of you needed to learn the world in which I live is not so black and white. Letting that woman go could get you all killed in the long run. However killing her in front of innocent witnesses would be even crueler and I chose an alternate path that I seldom take."

"You keep avoiding the topic. I've seen the way you look at her whenever she passes by. You _like_ her, don't you?"

"Is this really the appropriate time and place for this conversation?" Durante's face turned red as he turned his head away to hide the fact he was blushing.

"Well I keep hearing about these dreams of yours and you two keep having those tender, oh so private moments together. To be honest you have no idea what you're getting into with that woman."

Durante sighed before replying, "Yes I have dreams about her. I've had them all my life for as long as I can remember and don't have the faintest idea why. Happy now?"

"And how long is that exactly?" said a voice from behind before Durante stopped and turned to see Washu standing behind him. She was still very upset over what Durante had made her do though she was doing her best to hide it.

"Washu, I…" started Durante before being cut off by Washu.

"How long is "all your life?" she asked again. "Nicolai said you were hundreds of years old."

Durante didn't hesitate in his response as he looked her square in the face. After what he made her do earlier she deserved a straight answer. "Two-thousand seven hundred and forty-nine years. That's how long. "

"What!?" said Ryoko. "But that's…impossible. You're an Earthling right? A mere human."

"This isn't the time to talk about this," replied Durante. "If we get through this I'll tell you all everything, now keep moving."

Just then they heard a familiar cry, as if a cat was nearby with voices following close behind. Durante told them all to hit the deck and he could see what looked to be a little girl running through the fields nearby with close to twenty figures following close behind.

"Who the hell is that?" asked Durante as looked at the others.

"It's Ryo-Ohki!" replied Sasami. "We have to help her!"

"Your house pet? But how is that…never mind. It can wait, right now we need a plan."

"I'm done with plans!" yelled Ryoko. To Durante's shock and utter amazement the young girl took off into the night sky, flying straight towards the men chasing Ryo-Ohki and launching an attack. She fired a series of energy blasts hit the pursuing men, sending them flying about in every direction before they took cover where possible and began to return fire. Ryoko was in a fury, frustrated and angry at everything that transpired so far and anxious to get back at those who had dared pretend to be her master. As she seemed to have the upper hand however a sudden crossfire came from the left as a new team of soldiers arrived. It was a trap. They had used Ryo-Ohki as bait to draw them out and it had worked to the desired effect.

"Does that idiot always jump head first into everything without thinking?" asked Durante as he watched what was unfolding though he was still struggling to accept the fact Ryoko was darting about in the sky avoiding beam weapon discharges.

"Well she's…how can I put it?" thought Mihoshi for a moment. "Rather head strong."

"So as I thought, an idiot" replied Durante as he caught sight of Ryo-Ohki standing in the middle of the battle crying her eyes out. "All of you wait here!"

Durante got to his feet and began to sprint through the fields at a feverish pace to get to the little girl. Luckily Ryoko was keeping the enemy distracted with her onslaught.

"What the hell is he doing!?" exclaimed Noboyuki as he watched in amazement as the man began running straight into the chaos of the ensuing battle.

At first the enemy didn't shoot at him, not quite believing what they were seeing as Durante ran through their ranks while they continued to engage Ryoko. That wasn't really the astounding thing however. The astounding thing was that he was able to grab hold of Ryo-Ohki and proceeded to run back through the same mess he had just come through. Ryoko saw what he was doing and did her best to cover him as he ran through a literal light show of blaster fire as the enemy tried to stop him from making off with their prize. He was able to make it back to his original position where the others were waiting but the enemy was right behind him, a number of them having broken off their counter-attack on Ryoko and pursuing Durante instead. He handed off Ryo-Ohki to Sasami who took her into her arms before Durante turned around and began returning fire on the enemy as the others just stared at him in awe.

"Quit gawking and open fire!" Mihoshi and Noboyuki flinched in response before doing as ordered. Their shots were controlled and precise as to be expected of GP officers, downing a few enemies while some were deflected by the shields the enemy was wearing. Durante began firing off grenades from the launcher attached to his rifle, taking out a few scores of enemies before he was dry and switched to using the gun itself. Once again he was frustrated as the majority of his shots were simply deflected by the shields of the enemy.

"Washu, can't you do anything about those damn shields!?" yelled Durante as the battle ensued, taking off his pack and opening it up to pull out the drum magazine to reload his weapon.

"Yes, hold on!" replied Washu as she feverishly typed away at her terminal before pulling out of subspace what looked to be a few grenades. She tossed them to Durante.

"Just push the red button and throw it right in front of them!" yelled Washu.

"You're quite handy to have around!" Durante yelled back as he caught the devices in his hands.

Durante didn't ask questions about how they worked and did as she said, pressing the buttons and then tossing the devices in front of the rapidly closing enemy. They went off and a storm of energies were unleashed, overloading and disabling their shields. Without hesitating he slapped the drum magazine into his rifle, pulled the bolt back and switched it to full auto before opening fire on the dazed and stunned enemy, not giving them the chance to recover from the previous attack. The roar of the gunfire was deafening to everyone around him as he unleashed the weapon's full fury, the light of the heated gas coming out of the barrel lighting up his face with every flash. With his enhanced strength he was easily able to control the recoil and muzzle rise of the weapon, his shots ripping through the enemy with great effect and dropping them like wheat before the scythe.

Mihoshi and Noboyuki eventually stopped firing as they simply stared at Durante as he continued to blaze away into the night, the sound of the bullet casings hitting the ground in rapid succession. His eyes had all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming, not a trace of emotion as he continued to cut down the helpless enemy in front of him. It was a stark reminder to him of the horrors of the First World War. It went on for what seemed like an eternity before at last the drum magazine was empty and the firing stopped, the last shot echoing out into the night. All was quiet now except for a hissing noise as the cool night air collided with the overheated barrel of the rifle. Sasami calmed Ryo-Ohki who was still clutching to her breast while Washu uncovered her ears. Mihoshi and Noboyuki looked out at the scene in front of them. The attackers had been completely wiped out and their bodies littered the fields in sad, pitiful poses. There were no moans or cries, his work efficient and precise enough to the point not a single one was left alive. Durante caught his breath, calming his nerves in the process before he rose to his feet and changed out the magazine of his rifle. He looked up to see Ryoko gliding back down to the ground, having finished destroying the remainder of the other group on her own.

"We have to get out of here now," said Ryoko. "While I was up there I saw a shuttle landing near the house, more of them are on the way."

"Why don't we just teleport to the shrine like we did last time?" asked Sasami.

"Because I had to siphon off energy from the surrounding area to do it," replied Washu as she checked her terminal. "The entire power grid is down now so we're stuck walking."

"Right then…" said Durante as he continued to breathe heavily as he slung his weapon. "Let's get…moving."

"Hey are you alright?" asked Ryoko as Durante began to walk away.

"I'm…fine," said Durante before he lost his balance and fell to the ground, catching himself on his outstretched arm while clutching his chest with his free hand. Washu ran over to him to see what was wrong.

"No you're not fine, let me see," said Washu as she tried to move his hand away from his chest but he refused to comply. "Durante, move your hand!"

Durante relented to her scolding and did as he was told, revealing the wound he was trying to conceal. As she inspected it she could tell it was from the result of a beam weapon as there were clearly seen burn marks on the skin and surrounding material. She made him take off his body armor so she could get a better look at the wound itself which was cauterized so there was no bleeding but his heavy breathing was increasing. She then looked around at his back and could see why; he had been hit from behind when retrieving Ryo-Ohki. The beam had punched right through his body armor and out the other side taking part of his right lung with it. It was by no means fatal but it would hamper his performance significantly.

"Oh Durante…," said Washu. "We have to patch this up right now."

"No…," he replied. "There's no time. We have to keep moving."

"Must you always be so stubborn?"

"My body will heal itself over time," answered Durante as he stood up and started to walk away, leaving the useless body armor behind on the ground. "Besides, you know how I enjoy provoking you. Now let's get to the shrine."

"Heal on its own?" asked Washu with a puzzled look. "How so?"

"Like I said before, I'll tell you everything…once this is over."

As Washu watched him walk away she could not help but admire his resilience. Her view of him was starting to change as well from one of disdain to that of respect. He was a hard man to be sure but so far he had kept the vow he had made to her to protect her and had extended it to include her family as well. He had chosen to show restraint and not kill the woman though she knew the trap was likely a result of letting the woman go, proving his morbid logic to be sound. He had proven his courage and valor to her by risking his life, albeit recklessly to save Ryo-Ohki as well of the lives of everyone else on two separate occasions including the latest. They all fell into line and followed behind him, keeping his pace. Soon they reached the steps leading up to the shrine and began to make their way up when they heard a series of calls and shouts coming from behind. They'd been spotted and soon the enemy would be upon them once again. Durante rushed them up the stairs as quick as he could while taking up the rear but was soon falling behind because of his wound. Ryoko doubled back to help him out but he urged her to continue on without him. She ignored his order, telling him to grab hold of her as she lifted him off the ground and flew him to the top of the stairs. She then went back and did the same for Mihoshi and Noboyuki, grabbing hold of both of them while Washu did the same for Sasami and Ryo-Ohki. Though she very rarely did it Washu could indeed fly when she so chose to along with other abilities similar to her daughter's. She just chose not to use them and preferred walking to flying. Durante again watched in amazement as Washu came floating to a stop and landed, releasing Sasami and Ryo-Ohki from her arms who at this point had turned back into her smaller cabbit form.

"It seems there's more to you…than meets the eye," Durante said to Washu.

"There's quite a bit you don't know about me," said Washu as she gave him a playful wink.

"They're coming!" cried Noboyuki who could see them rushing up the stairs.

"All of you get out of here and…get to that portal," said Durante as he stood up and made his way to the edge of the stairs, readying his weapons. "I'll give you the time you need."

"What are you going to do?" asked Sasami.

"I'll do what I've always done," replied Durante as he did a brass check on his rifle and pistol. "I'll stand and fight."

"But you can't possibly beat them all on your own!" shouted Ryoko.

"That's a fact," said Durante. "But I'll hold them off…just the same."

"But you'll die," said Washu. "You know that."

"Then I die. Now do as I say and get moving."

Washu looked down at the ground as he said this, clenching her firsts and gritting her teeth. How could he be so nonchalant about it? Didn't he care at all about his own well-being? Why was he so ready to die? Or rather did he simply desire death?

"You stupid, stubborn man…," muttered Washu under her breath before looking back up him. "Are you really so eager to throw your life away?"

"If it's to give you all a chance to escape then yes," he responded. "I'll gladly throw my life away."

"But I don't want you to die!" Washu yelled at him, her eyes infused with tears. "I don't want any more to die because of me!"

"This is my choice," said Durante as he struggled to breathe. "This is who I really am, this is the only life…I have ever known. I live by the sword and…I will die by it as well. "

"Damn you and your honor!" said Washu as she looked away. It was more foolishness that adults partook of. Foolishness she had thrown away so long ago.

Durante walked up to Washu, turning her head and looked her right in the eyes before wiping away her tears.

"I'm thankful for having…had the chance to meet and know you," said Durante with a faint smile. "But now you must go!"

"Washu we have to get out of here now!" yelled Ryoko as she grabbed hold of her hand and they began to run along with the others. Washu looked back at Durante who was fast disappearing from her view before she took the lead and led the group to Katsuhito's office where the subspace portal to her lab was located in the closet. She wiped away her tears and quickly came to her senses, opening her terminal to activate the portal before they started hearing gunfire. She ignored it and stayed on task, unlocking the portal and opening it before they all ran through it and deactivated it from the other side. Durante was now alone and on his own.

The rifle clicked as Durante tried to take another shot as beams whizzed past him but the last magazine was finally empty. He threw the rifle down and drew the sword from the scabbard on his back before it crackled to life.

 _"To live by the sword and to die by the sword,"_ he thought to himself. _"I wouldn't have it any other way."_

With sheer determination on his face and fury in his heart he then charged down the stairs towards the advancing enemy, yelling a battle cry before he struck the first blow. Foot to foot, body to body and man to man he struggled and pushed and strived and killed. Drowned in sweat and red with blood he pushed forward down the stairs, receiving numerous wounds in the process. There would be no mercy and respite from either himself or his enemy. It was now a fight to the death. It was here he would fight and it was here he would die like he had so many times before. Durante and death were old friends and when death smiles all a man can do is smile back.


	6. Chapter V - Revelations

The early morning sun was rising and the Masaki residence was buzzing with activity as planetary defense teams scoured the area rounding up the remainder of Ridda's forces. As soon as Washu and the others had gained access to her lab she had sent a distress signal straight to Lady Seto Kamiki Jurai, also known as The Devil Princess of Jurai. She had responded in kind by sending a pair of Royal Treeships that were located in a nearby solar system and upon their arrival had scattered the enemy and sent them running. Unfortunately for the Juraians the vast majority of the enemy was able to escape aboard their ship in orbit and exit the system with one of the Royal Treeships giving chase. Sometime later Lady Seto herself arrived aboard her Royal Treeship the Mikagami with a Galaxy Police escort along with her daughter Lady Misaki and Lady Funaho, the Empresses of Jurai and the wives of Emperor Azusa Masaki. There was a tearful reunion between Misaki and her daughter Sasami though Ryoko chose to keep her distance from the woman recalling their first "meeting" very well. Sasami was still very much shaken by the previous night's events, the sight of so many being killed and what they done to her family in the house was something that would haunt her for many years to come. Washu had briefed Lady Seto and the two empresses on everything that had transpired including how Durante had aided them in their escape but also how he had his own plans. Though they were grateful to the man and the assistance he had provided they were still furious with Noboyuki for allowing such a dangerous figure into the house in the first place. He had been completely irresponsible in their eyes and scolded him for being so reckless; his personal pride in providing a living had endangered everyone around him including a member of the Jurai Royal Family. To ensure it didn't happen again they gave Noboyuki a substantial sum of money despite his protests but also revoked his off world privileges until further notice.

From the house the residents watched as the Juraian soldiers and Galaxy Police officers continued their work but so far Ridda and his second in command were nowhere to be seen and neither was Durante. Working with the Japanese government the Juraians had closed off Masaki Village and the surrounding area to outsiders while they cleaned up the mess, the cover story being that was there was an industrial spill of some kind in the area and so far it was keeping people away. Many of the soldiers belonging to Ridda had chosen to fight it out or commit suicide rather than face capture by Lady Seto whose fierce reputation had preceded her. By now however many of them were throwing down their arms and surrendering with some of the prisoners making insane mutterings of a demon at the shrine. Nicolai's body had been laid out on one of the beds in the guest house and covered up with a blanket while the Japanese government searched for any next of kin to notify to which so far there were none. Katsuhito himself managed to make it back to the house in a hurry after the shield finally lifted when the enemy ship left orbit and he was reunited with the others to their great relief. Noboyuki had called his wife Rea to let her know he was safe but until the quarantine was over she was unable to get past the blockade to see him.

Noboyuki, Mihoshi and the others still recalled the bravery and selflessness Durante had displayed the previous night and dared to hope he was somehow still alive though they knew it was fairly unlikely. Washu in particular thought on this, recalling his words and his faint smile before she and the others left him to his fate. He had not shown or given any hint of fear or regret over his decision to stay behind and fight. She did not doubt his bravery or skill in battle but wondered why he was so ready and willing to die for strangers. The others had said nothing more of it or of the tears she had shed that night. It wasn't very often people saw Washu cry but when she did they knew how much it took for something to get to her and they had given her the space she needed while she continued to dwell. In her mind there was conflict however. She still hated Durante for what he made her do with the gun along all the lies and basic emotional hell he had putting her through for the last couple of weeks but part of her also knew that if wasn't for him this whole situation could have turned out much worse. Because of this Washu had managed to find a place in her heart for Durante. He was a bastard to be sure but at the same time she felt the pain of his loss along with Nicolai, both men having paid the ultimate price for her past sins. As she continued to dwell on this a Juraian officer came running into the house to report to Lady Seto.

"Your Majesty!" The officer snapped to attention before he saluted Lady Seto. "We've found something I think you should see."

"What have you found Captain?" Lady Seto asked.

The captain was at a loss for words before he replied, "I…don't know. I honestly don't know what to make of it; I've never seen anything like it before."

"Where exactly?" asked Lady Misaki.

"Uh…um up by the shrine." Being a lowly officer on the frontier the captain struggled to maintain his composure as he talked to the empress, let alone being around the other members of the Jurai Royal Family. Washu overheard their conversation and walked over to speak to the captain.

"Take me there," Washu said simply. She already knew it was related to Durante and that he was likely among the dead that laid there. It was simple math; he had been completely outnumbered and it was very unlikely he had survived the battle though the thought was hard for her to come to terms with.

The captain looked at Washu and then over at Lady Seto who nodded before he led the group out to the scene under armed guard. Noboyuki, Mihoshi and Sasami along with her mother Misaki had elected to stay behind at the house but Ryoko and Katsuhito had gone along with Washu and the others. As they walked down the dirt road towards the shrine a column of prisoners walked by under heavy guard. Many of them stared at Washu and the others with glaring contempt before she caught sight of Ridda trailing at the end with Miranda hanging over his shoulder as he continued to limp along. Washu had the captain leading their group halt the column before she confronted the pair. The two stared at Washu and the others, saying nothing.

"Commander Ridda…" said Washu with a look of anguish on her face. "What happened to Durante? Where is he?"

"Are you talking about that psycho who slaughtered my men and nearly killed me?" asked Ridda. "Last I saw of him or rather what was left of him was at the shrine."

"Bastard!" yelled Ryoko as she grabbed the man by the collar before she conjured up her beam saber. "I should kill you where stand along with that bitch of yours!"

Katsuhito restrained Ryoko before she did anything she would later regret and carted her off away from Ridda so she could cool off, leaving Washu to confront him alone.

"It was nothing personal," said Ridda as he hefted up Miranda on his shoulder. "But now that we've failed our master will be coming for us."

"Who is you master?" asked Washu.

"You know I can't tell you that."

"But you _will_ tell me I think," said Lady Seto as she came forward. The prisoners in the column had a look of panic come across their faces, knowing full well who Lady Seto was. "Take these two to my ship for proper interrogation but don't start until I return" she said to the soldier leading the column. "And get the rest of this scum out of my sight."

The captain continued leading the group on to the shrine before they walked past the fields where Durante and Ryoko had earlier laid waste to Ridda's men. A breeze blew over the shell casings that still littered the ground and scattered them about, making them jingle as they rolled across the earth while twisted and disfigured remains of the men killed laid motionless. It was a truly pitiful and heartbreaking sight to behold and even Lady Seto was moved, it having being a great many centuries since the last time she had personally laid eyes on a field of battle. Soon the smell would become overwhelming as later in the day the hot sun beat down on them while the crows picked at their corpses. Lady Seto had no desire to witness such a thing and sent one of the guards' running back with orders to remove the bodies as soon as possible. The captain urged them on until at last they came to the stairs leading up to the shrine where they were met by another equally horrific sight. Littering the stairs all the way up to the top of the shrine were the butchered bodies of a great many men. Laying at the very edge of the stairs was one body that was dressed differently from the others. Washu immediately recognized the clothing and broke off from the rest of the group, running towards the body while the others chased after her.

The man was lying on his side motionless with sword still in hand having been cut and shot to pieces. Washu dropped to her knees and reached out for his arm, using it as leverage to turn him over only to see the expressionless, blood stained face of Durante staring back up at her. He was dead. His vacant eyes stared up at Washu and she looked away briefly before she forced herself to look at him again. He had fought his way all the way down the stairs, receiving numerous wounds in battle before finally succumbing to them but had not died alone. His body was surrounded by that of his enemies, having cut down every man who stood before him. It had been a last stand in every sense of the phrase.

"Durante…," Washu said quietly to herself as she looked down at him with a look of sorrow. Using her hand she closed Durante's eyes and tenderly brushed back his hair to make him look somewhat more at peace. From behind the others observed her reaction before Lady Funaho approached Washu, placing her hand on Washu's shoulder.

"I'm sorry he didn't make it, but his sacrifice was not in vain," said Lady Funaho. "Because of his efforts all of you were able to escape."

"His sacrifice never should have happened in the first place," responded Washu as she got to her feet. "All of this has been my fault. If it wasn't for me…"

"That's not true Washu," interjected Noboyuki. "You had no idea this would happen and if it wasn't for this man I'd probably be dead right now. He saved our lives; all we can do is honor his sacrifice."

"He really did it for you Washu," commented Ryoko. "We just happened to be along for the ride is all."

"But who was he?" asked Lady Seto. "What kind of man was he to be able to put up such resistance all on his own?"

"A brave one," answered Washu. "As to who he was all I have is memories and a name."

"I believe I can answer that," said a voice. Washu and the others turned around to see a tall, lean man in a black suit and tie along with a pair of dark sunglasses obscuring his face. His hair was white and his skin pale but what caught Washu's attention was the color of his eyes as he removed his glasses. They were the same color as Durante's, the same greyish-silver.

"Who the hell are you?" asked Ryoko.

"The name is Smith," the man replied. "Special Agent Smith. I'm representing my government in this incident."

"Special Agent Smith?" said Ryoko with an unbelieving look on her face, recalling the name had been used in many bad Earth movies. "Are…are you being serious right now?"

"Very serious Miss Ryoko."

"Your government?" asked Lady Funaho.

"Quite right your majesty." The man gave her a graceful bow before continuing to speak. "I'm representing my government. The United States of America to be exact."

"And what do the Americans want here?" asked Lady Seto with a slight smirk.

"Oh nothing much," he replied as he put his hands in his pockets and began strolling around looking at the bloody scene. "Just the usual. Classified and all that you know. Real hush, hush."

"The usual huh?' replied Lady Seto. "Does that mean the pilfering and theft of off world technologies?"

"Theft is such a strong word. Let's say to tactically acquire instead but I'm mostly here for my boy lying over there." Smith gestured over to Durante's body. He then approached the group before being stopped by one of the guards with a raised staff weapon.

"Stay where you are!" shouted the guard. "Commoners may not approach this area!"

Agent Smith sighed heavily before he reached into his coat pocket and retrieved a piece of paper along with his other credentials before presenting them to the guard.

"You see this piece of paper?" said Smith as he waived it in front of the guard's face. "This paper is a copy of an agreement signed by that lovely green haired lady's government and my own authorizing me access to this entire area and any other areas that fall into a similar criteria aka fucking aliens landing on Earth. And this badge? It's for Uncle Sam's Central Intelligence Agency which means I can take that overgrown toothpick of yours and shove it so far up your ass it'll come out of your mouth and become a flag pole so I can run up the stars and stripes while whistling Yankee Doodle. Understand?"

The guard remained speechless as Smith tucked his credentials back into his coat pocket and brushed past him unchallenged. He made his way past the group and over to Durante's body where Washu was still standing who was watching him wearily, her emerald green eyes fixated on him like a cat's. As the group observed his actions he squatted over Durante and reached out with his hand before Washu snapped at him.

"Don't touch him," she said with a glare. Smith took heed of the warning and drew back his hand. He knew exactly what she was and did not dare defy her when she was so obviously distressed.

"Relax Miss Washu, I have no intention of vandalizing the body," said Smith. "I just need to document it is all."

Smith then took out a small camera from his pocket and began snapping photos of Durante's body, taking special notice of his injuries before moving on to the surrounding bodies and artifacts. The act greatly bothered Washu and the others who had been with Durante last but Lady Seto reassured them he meant no harm and to let him work.

"How do you know our names anyway?" asked Ryoko.

"Sweetheart I work for the CIA," replied Smith as he continued snapping pictures of the area. "I know everything about you, the red head and everyone else here along with everything else that happens on this little blue ball related to off world incidents. It's my job to know. "

"So wait… people on Earth know about and work with Jurai?" asked Noboyuki. "Doesn't that go against intergalactic law regarding interfering with developing civilizations?"

"Doesn't you lot being here go against that same intergalactic law?"

"That'll be enough of that Special Agent Smith," said Lady Seto. "Just finish your work."

"Please do, I don't want Durante's body being left out here," said Washu who was running out of patience.

"Oh don't worry he won't," said Smith as he put his camera away and walked around Durante's body while looking at his watch. "Interesting, this is taking much longer than usual. How long has he been out?"

"Been out? What are you talking about? The man is dead!"

"Never mind," said Smith as he realized she had no idea what he really meant. He squatted over Durante yet again and put his fingers over the carotid artery on the neck to check for a pulse. He then got up and began to pace around impatiently as he continued looking at his watch.

"Oh come on!" yelled Smith before he kicked Durante's corpse. "You didn't take this long at The Angle! Get your lazy ass up already!"

Washu went into a rage, grabbing Smith by his coat and slamming him into a nearby tree. Giving a rare demonstration of her real strength she lifted the man up by the collar with his feet dangling above the ground before getting into his face. "Just what the hell do you think you're doing!? Have you lost your mind!?"

She was being fueled by raw emotions at this point, the guilt and memory of Durante disappearing behind her as she ran to safety still too fresh in her mind. As she continued to berate Smith for his utter disrespect for the dead as everyone else looked on in disbelief at her reaction, never before seeing her so angry or emotionally charged. Then something happened that scared her and everyone else around her half to death. Durante made a loud gasp before he suddenly shot upright, taking in heavy breaths before he began coughing up blood. Washu and the others were completely taken aback by what was happening before Smith threw off Washu's grasp and ran over to Durante.

"Durante! Durante can you hear me!?" shouted Smith as he grabbed hold of Durante who began to flail about in a panic. "It's alright, you're safe! Calm down!"

Washu and the others stood by in complete shock and silence, unable to grasp what they were witnessing. A dead man had suddenly sprung back to life and was moving about on his own. It simply wasn't possible. Durante then began to convulse violently as he tried to speak.

"Re…re…reg," muttered Durante weakly. Smith moved in closer to be able to hear him more clearly. "Regen….eration..."

Smith suddenly became pale and wide eyed at the utterance of this fragmented word before he picked up Durante from off the ground and hoisted him over his shoulder, the man crying out in pain from his still present injuries.

"Wha…what's happening!?" asked Ryoko. "I thought he was dead!?"

"He was dead but now he's not. Now get the fuck out of my way!" yelled Smith.

Smith pushed past everyone and made his way towards the open fields with the others following after him. As he ran across the dirt road Durante's skin began to glow with a yellowish, iridescent blue aura. Without saying a word Smith dropped Durante in the middle of the field and then ran back to the others who were waiting nearby to keep them at bay. Washu came running up as fast as she could to get to Durante before Smith grabbed hold of her and restrained her from doing so.

"What are you doing!?" she yelled. "Let me go you bastard, he needs our help!"

"No you must stay away from him!" Smith yelled in reply as he continued to hold her back. "All of you stay back!"

"Let me go!" Washu yelled again. She didn't understand why Smith was trying to stop her but she continued to try to break free but to no avail. His strength was just as overbearing as Durante's had been the previous night and she didn't understand how that could be so. He was just a regular Earthling right?

As Washu continued to try to get to Durante she suddenly stopped resisting and looked out at the ever growing source of light in the middle of the field. She and the others watched as Durante painfully and with great effort got to his knees, the light continuing to grow ever brighter. It was at this point Washu saw that the light itself was some sort of energy that was emanating directly from Durante's body.

"Come on we have to go!" yelled Smith as he pulled Washu away and ran her back to the dirt road.

From a distance they all watched as the energy began to blossom out from Durante's head and hands in wavering strands, similar to a willow tree caught in a high wind. He then seemed to position himself, keeping his head erect and his arms pointed away from his body as the ground around him began to shake violently. His breathing became taxing, as if he was preparing for something. A sudden eruption of energy burst forth from Durante's body before it enveloped him completely, the light blinding everyone who looked at it and forcing them to cover or avert their eyes. The energy lashed out far above his head and into the sky where it could be seen for miles around the house, stopping all activity as everyone gazed up in wonder at this strange phenomenon. The energy burst outwards around Durante, instantly igniting the crops and starting a series of fires in every direction for over a hundred yards. It was an awesome and frightening display of raw power; even the two empresses' and Lady Seto were taken aback by the spectacle. Never before in their lives had any of them seen or experienced such a thing, let alone ever hearing of such an event. The energy washed over Durante in waves as all of his injuries, even the most catastrophic seemed to be instantly healed in rapid succession before at last he was completely restored as the energy began to recede and eventually dissipate completely. Durante was still on his knees with steam rising off his now bare naked body, his clothing and gear having been completely vaporized by the process. As the fires around him still raged Durante began to recover from the shock of his regeneration and slowly rose up from the ground. His body restored he raised his fists to the sky and let out a primal yell that echoed out across the fields as if announcing to the universe his victory over death itself.

As they watched Durante get to his feet Smith's grip on Washu relaxed and she broke free of his grasp. She darted across the fields as fast as her legs could carry her, ignoring the fires around her before stopping right in front of Durante. She looked at him for a moment, unsure of how he would respond. He simply stared at her, not giving any indication that he recognized her. Without saying a word she clasped her hands around his still hot, steaming face and looked into his eyes. The empty stare was gone; the spark of life had indeed returned to him. Durante then seemed to realize who she was as he lowered her hands and smiled before opening his mouth to speak.

"Well…," said Durante with a raspy, weak voice. He glanced about at the fires still raging around them before turning his attention back to Washu. "I guess you could say I'm burning for you."

Washu just stood there and gave a blank stare, still not quite believing Durante was alive and speaking to her. Before long she snapped back to attention, realizing the terrible pun he had made. She laughed weakly at his bad joke and equally bad attempt to flirt with her before taking him completely off guard, throwing her arms around him and embracing him as a feeling of pure joy and relief washed over her. Whether it was at the fact Durante himself was alive or a terrible guilt had been lifted from her shoulders no one could really say. He embraced her in return, relieved to see she was safe and that his efforts had been successful, For a time the two figures simply held one another in the early morning light before an utterance from behind interrupted the Kodak moment.

"Umm I hate to interrupt but…you do know he's completely naked right?" said Smith.

Washu's face turned bright red as she looked down at Durante and realized Smith was indeed correct about him being naked. She quickly released Durante from her embrace and turned away, embarrassed. Durante looked up at Special Agent Smith and his face changed from a pleasant one to his usual scowl.

"What in the hell are you doing here?" asked Durante.

"Well nice to see you too Durante. I'll tell you what I can when we get back to the house. In the meantime Miss Washu could you conjure up some clothes for our friend here? I'd rather he not walk around butt naked in front of Jurai royalty."

"Not yet," said Washu as she began walking around and looking over Durante's body, studying it with great interest. She had never seen anything like it before. Every wound, gouge, cut and gunshot was completely healed. There wasn't even a trace of scar tissue. She continued to observe him and with everyone else looking on in the distance with equally great interest, still enthralled by the event they had just witnessed.

"Look if you two need a moment alone I'm sure there an empty room back at the house you can use," said Smith before Durante snapped back at him.

"Just what are you suggesting!?"

"That'll be enough of that," said Washu as she pulled out a pair of jeans, shoes and a t-shirt from subspace and tossed them to Durante. "Now get dressed, you're about to meet some of the most powerful people in the galaxy and you have a lot of questions to answer."

Back at the house Durante was met by the others who had stayed behind. They were shocked to learn of Durante's return from the dead and the source of the light show earlier was his regeneration as he called it. Washu was busy repairing the damage done to the structure of the house, a task she had become very familiar with since living there no thanks to the spats between Ayeka and Ryoko. While it was nothing unusual to the residents of the house or for those who came beyond the stars Durante was completely captivated by it as he watched her work, restoring entire sections of the house from nothing in mere moments. In return everyone else in the house gave Durante passing stares and an uneasy atmosphere had fallen over the house. After all a dead man was sitting on their couch.

Even though Smith was familiar with such advanced alien technology he himself still hadn't gotten used to it and seeing it is used with such grace enthralled him. As Durante sat on the couch he wiped off his face and arms with a hot, wet towel doing his best to clean off what dirt, blood and grime he could as he continued to watch Washu work. Smith walked over and sat beside him before pulling a flask from his coat pocket, opening it and taking a swig before passing over to Durante who proceeded to take a long and well deserved drink.

"So how do you feel?" asked Smith, speaking in a combination of Latin and ancient Greek so nobody could easily understand what he was saying even with the aid of a universal translator. With the exception of Washu nobody else in the room could understand what they were saying and she was currently occupied.

"Like complete and utter shit," answered Durante as he finished his drink and handed the flask back to Smith. "I'm starving and desperately craving a cigarette."

"She's pretty amazing isn't she?"

"Yes," said Durante as he continued to watch Washu work, completely entranced. "She's incredible."

"Now there is a look I have not seen on your face in centuries." Smith leaned over to Durante so the others wouldn't hear their conversation. "She's the one isn't she?" he whispered. "The one from those damned, ridiculous dreams of yours? Not like that incident with the French whore in Paris back in 1703?"

"She's the one alright, I'm certain. I've had the last couple of millennia to memorize her face and for the record in Paris I was freshly resurrected and piss drunk."

"Durante…" started Smith. "What if I told you that Washu there is really over 20,000 years old? And that she created Ryoko who is her daughter by the way along with that creature known as Ryo-Ohki?"

Durante looked at him wide eyed before he responded, "That's ridiculous. How is something like that even possible? She doesn't look a day past 30."

"Is it really? They just watched you, a dead man rise from a blood-soaked grave and then set half their fields on fire with your little light show earlier. I think a lot of the impossible today has become the probable. You've by some miracle stumbled on to something here that you were never supposed to and now I'm stuck cleaning up the giant mess you made."

"I'm not the one who attacked these people."

"That's true and from what these people and the Jurai tell me you single-handedly wiped out over half of the attacking alien force in one night, roughly fifty confirmed kills. I'd say that's a new record for you."

"You won't hear me gloating over it," replied Durante. "I did what had to be done."

"I'm curious to know though," asked Smith. "What were you doing here to begin with?"

"I found him." Smith looked over at him, his interest now peaked. "I found Muller, here in this country. I was all set to take him tonight and then this mess happened."

"You have? Where!?" Smith asked excitedly while keeping his voice low. Durante responded by keeping silent and then gesturing with his head over at Washu who had just finished repairing the rest of the damage to the house. Their conversation would have to wait for now.

Eventually the others all gathered in the living room with Smith and Durante as there were many questions that needed answering. Lady Seto began by telling Durante who she was along with introducing Lady Funaho and Lady Misaki before telling him everything about the Jurai Empire, the state of galaxy and how the Earth was in a special protection zone of the Jurai Empire because it was still a developing civilization. She then moved on to tell Durante the true identities of the people he had been living with. Sasami was a princess of Jurai and daughter of Misaki, Mihoshi was from the prestigious Kuramitsu family of the planet Seniwa and a member of the Galaxy Police.

How Katsuhito was really Yosho and also a member of the Jurai Royal Family before moving on to Ryoko, explaining how she was a reformed space pirate and former terror of the galaxy along with her ship Ryo-Ohki. She also explained how they were the creations of Washu Hakubi, the greatest scientific genius in the universe and how they were all captured by Kagato but later freed. Lady Seto decided to negate any mention of Tenchi or the others who were not currently present, preferring to keep such additional information secret. Durante sat there the whole time and listened to it all while containing his amazement. He simply could not believe what he was hearing. Aliens were living on Earth which was part of the territory of some far flung interstellar empire he had never heard of and the woman from his dreams was some sort of ancient super scientist with technology and abilities he never dared to believe was possible.

"And that's about everything really," said Lady Seto.

"And what's your role in all of this?" Durante asked Smith.

"Me? Oh I'm just one of many liaisons between the Earth and Jurai," answered Smith. "My main job is to suppress any knowledge of the existence of this relationship between the Earth and Jurai such as with the situation here. Also to keep an eye on groups of off-worlders such as the Masaki clan here who are a great interest to the United States but they're also a great source of stress and fear."

"Why are we a source of stress and fear?" asked Sasami. "What have we done?"

"Not so much what you've done Sasami but who and what you are," replied Smith.

"And _what_ are we?" asked Ryoko.

"You're a threat Ryoko," said Smith. "Your very presence here makes our planet a target. If it were up to me I'd have you all removed immediately after this last little incident not to mention the previous one."

"Previous one?" asked Durante. "What previous one?"

"A few years ago when these people first arrived they attracted the attention of the one called Kagato," began Smith. "He came here with a gigantic ship called the Soja which was a creation of Miss Hakubi here who was also his prisoner at the time. He came looking for Ryoko and Ryo-Ohki along with a particular Juraian artifact. During the incident he fired a large beam weapon which if hadn't been stopped by one of the Juraians' ships would have destroyed the Earth. We were going to respond with a nuclear attack but the Soja was destroyed shortly after by some unknown means. Since then they've been residing here and I was assigned with watching their every move."

"How's that?" asked Noboyuki. "We've never seen you before today."

"Oh I have my ways sir. Remember I'm watching you, not the other way around. It's my job to remain unseen."

"I think now however," Lady Misaki started to say. "We would all like to hear from Durante. For starters who and what you really are."

"I've seen many things in my long years but never so much as a dead man returning from the grave," said Lady Funaho.

"Errm…could we have something to eat first?" asked Mihoshi whose stomach started to growl. "I'm starving!"

"I don't see the harm in that," replied Lady Seto. "I think we could all do with something to eat. Sasami, why don't you go prepare some breakfast for everyone? We'll talk once it's ready."

"Yes grandmother," said Sasami who was more than willing to take on the task. Anything to take her mind off the previous night's events.

As Sasami went to go prepare the meal Durante took the opportunity to return to the guest house and pay his last respects to Nicolai. Washu and Ryoko decided to accompany him both to likewise pay their respects and keep an eye on Durante should he try to escape. He may have saved their lives but they still didn't completely trust him, especially after his regeneration which made him possibly more powerful and dangerous than originally assumed. Who knew what else he is capable of? They followed him to the guest house and there they found Nicolai's body lying in the bed still covered over. Durante took a knee and threw off the blanket, looking upon the aged face of his deceased friend. He remained quiet, saying nothing as he kneeled and lowered his head.

"I'm sorry about Nicolai," said Washu breaking the silence.

"The old man didn't let them push him around unlike the rest of us," said Ryoko.

"He wasn't an old man," Durante snapped at Ryoko. "He was Captain Nicolai Karzanovich of the Soviet Red Army. Twice awarded Hero of the Soviet Union, veteran of the Great Patriotic War. We fought together all the way from the smoke choked ruins and meat grinder of Stalingrad, to the fields of Kursk and onto the blood soaked streets of Berlin where we stormed the Reichstag. We watched the red banner be raised over the city, the final victory ours at last. That is who he was."

"It's my fault this happened. He died because of me." Washu diverted her gaze to the floor, her head hung low. She could not help but blame herself. They were attacked because of her own creations and the power and allure of her gems. Now an innocent man was dead and she did not have the power nor the heart to restore him. Bringing him back would only bring about more confusion and potentially more pain to Durante who had already accepted the fate of his friend.

Durante rose to his feet and turned back to face Washu, an angry look coming across his face before he spoke. "Don't you for even a moment think that Nicolai's death was because of you. He died because of his own actions, brave and defiant to the end like any soldier should. No one, not even you will not take that honor away from him. Now raise your head and stop feeling so damn guilty Washu. You've done nothing to be ashamed over."

They watched Durante recover Nicolai's body with the blanket and then walk over to one of the dressers, removing the top drawer before reaching back and pulling out a series of documents. He then walked up to the two women, holding up the documents up to their faces.

"You want to know who I really am and what I'm doing here, right? Here's part of your answer. If you want to know the rest then come with me." Durante brushed by them and headed back into the house, not uttering another word about the death of Nicolai. The two women couldn't understand his reaction, it seemed so cold hearted but for now they followed him back into the house and into the living room where the others were already seated and eating. The meal itself was nothing extravagant consisting of only rice, smoked fish and some tea to drink but it was more than enough for now. As they continued with their meal Durante walked over to Smith and dropped the documents in front of him, catching the attention of everyone at the table.

"I've been alive for almost three millennia and I cannot die," Durante said as looked around the table before his gaze centered on Washu. "As Washu here quickly figured out my name is not Edmond Dantès. My real name is Durante Aeneas Romulus. I was born in 753 BC in the village of Rome on the banks of the Tiber River. From there I helped build one of the greatest empires this world has ever seen and now that it's gone I am nothing but a wanderer. My main source of employment these days is the battlefield working as a mercenary. "

Durante then looked at Lady Misaki. "You wish to know why I am here? I came here to find this man."

Durante then grabbed a file amongst the pile of paperwork and opened it to reveal a black and white photo of a man in uniform before passing it around the table.

"This is Heinrich Muller, head of the Gestapo which was the political secret state police of the Nazi Party in Germany. He helped plan, organize and execute the Final Solution or the Holocaust as it is more widely known before and during the Second World War. He is in part responsible for the mass genocide of over six million men, women and children on an industrial scale including the wife and daughter of my friend Nicolai. And now that I've found him I will take his head, come hell or high water."

Genocide. A word seldom heard or examples seen in the realms of the rest of the galaxy. It was something about the Earth that the Jurai regarded as savage and barbaric. The people of this planet were almost constantly at war with one another and killed, murdered each other in droves. Having suffered two world wars and a nuclear stalemate in the last century alone there was little hope the planet would last another century unless Jurai interfered directly at some point.

"I don't understand, he's an Earthling correct?" asked Lady Seto. "Surely he's old and withered by now?"

"No, he's not," replied Smith with a solemn look. "He's one of us, old and withered doesn't apply and neither does death."

"One of us?" asked Lady Misaki. "What do you mean by that Smith?"

"Smith?" said Durante. "Are you still using that ridiculous and outdated handle of yours Vincere?"

"Vincere!?" everyone at the table exclaimed.

"And the cat is out of the bag as they say," said Vincere as he drank his tea. "Thanks a lot Durante, some brother you are."

"Brother!?" they all exclaimed again.

"Your "name" is Special Agent Smith and your job is to run about chasing around aliens?" scoffed Durante. "You couldn't make up a B movie with a plot worse than that!"

"And what about you?" rebutted Vincere. "Going under the name Edmond Dantès? A little far from Paris aren't we Count?"

"Enough bickering children," interrupted Washu, playing her usual role of mother to dispel the chaos. "There's no doubt you're brothers at this point. Now what did you mean Vincere by your earlier comment?"

"He meant what he said," replied Durante. "He is one of us, an Immortal."

"Immortal? There's no such thing as immortality," said Washu, unconvinced. As a goddess she did have what could be considered true immortality. Telling people she was only 20,000 years old was a like a woman in her 40's saying she's only 20 but even a goddess had to be modest about her true age. She was in truth older than the multiverse itself and as far as she knew would last as long as the multiverse did. For regular mortals longevity could be obtained by thousands of years such as how the Jurai bonded with Royal Trees or in the very rare, sole exception of Tenchi who would potentially live for hundreds of thousands of years. However a being that was truly immortal was simply not possible. In the end whether it is fifty years or five hundred thousand all things eventually die. Washu knew she could not deny the evidence put before her however. Durante was in fact dead when she found him by the stairs leading up to the shrine and then he was resurrected by some unknown means or power that was outside the Chousin's control. It went against their laws of nature and now she was very interested to know how it was even possible. With Tenchi gone Durante would be her new pet project.

"Isn't there though?" replied Durante. "You yourself are over 20,000 years old are you not? Even for me that's hard to comprehend. And it's the same for most of you in this room isn't it? I'm relatively young compared to most of you from what you've told me."

"Gee thanks for reminding me Durante, you're a _true_ gentleman." Washu took a drink of her tea, not quite believing the man could be so rude and yet be dense enough to completely overlook it.

"It's true some of us here are quite older than you," replied Katsuhito. "But our lifespan's are simply sustained for longer periods of time, we're not truly immortal. For us Juraians we have our Royal Trees, Ryoko and Washu the gems along with her advanced technology. You however have nothing it seems other than your body. It's truly fascinating. "

"There has to be a more logical explanation," said Washu. "It's simply not possible for anyone to be truly immortal."

"I'm not so sure about that Washu," said Katsuhito in a rare instance of disagreement with the red haired genius. "I didn't mention it before but this is not the first time I've encountered Durante nor seen him dead. I saw him once before during the Satsuma Rebellion back in 1877 at the Battle of Shiroyama. He was with the last of the samurai as they made their suicide charge and he got the farthest before being killed. The next day as the bodies were being removed from the field he was already gone. I searched everywhere for this foreign warrior but nobody had found the body and when he came to stay here at the house I was more than certain he was the same man."

"It's true I was there," confessed Durante. "I was contracted out as a mercenary but in the end it came down to a matter of honor."

"Honor?" inquired Katsuhito.

"I have a personal code that's I've always lived by," said Durante as the others continued to listen. "Never act a coward, never give up, never give in and above all never run from an enemy. My only way is forwards, never back and I will die a thousand times before ever leaving the field in defeat or disgrace."

"I can attest to that," said Vincere. "After the Confederacy lost the Civil War Durante here refused to surrender. He wondered out to the west of the plains and was an outlaw for quite a number of years."

"Really!?" exclaimed Noboyuki who held a secret fascination with the American West. "What name did you go by then? What I mean is what name did you go by in the west exactly?"

Durante took a long drink of water before he answered, "Not a name you'd know. I mostly drifted from one town to the next after the war while dodging bounty hunters and blue coats. A few gunfights here and there, stealing cattle, a robbery or two. Nothing major really. After I got tired of being on the run I returned to my mercenary duties and ended up in Japan, being hired to take part in the samurai's rebellion."

"Wait I'm confused…just how many wars have you been in?" asked Mihoshi as she began to overthink it. "Or is it all the same one?"

"They're all different," replied Vincere not quite believing the level of her empty headiness. "If you lot are going to live here you might want to brush up on the local history of the planet or you'll stand out."

"Before Nicolai died he said to Ridda and his men that you were "a veteran of a thousand wars and the thousands of battles that went with them," said Washu. "Is that true? Just how many wars have you been in? How many times have you…died?"

Durante sat back and thought on the question. To be honest he hadn't thought about it at all in many years. The violent life he had been living for so long had for him become the norm, going from one conflict to the next so in truth he couldn't give her a complete answer. He then remembered a poem he had become very fond of over the years and decided to recite it though in a more summarized form, hopeful it would sate her interest.

"Through the travail of ages," started Durante as he took a moment to remember the verses. "Midst the pomp and toils of war have I fought, and strove and perished countless times upon the star. As if through a glass and darkly, the age long strife I see. Where I fought in many guises, many names but always me."

"So in other words you don't really know?" Washu didn't really get the answer she had wanted but Durante had gotten the meaning across. In short it was a lot. She liked his cultured response to the question however, a quality she admired.

"After so many deaths at the hands of so many wars and battles one tends to stop counting," answered Durante. "You just get up and keep moving forward."

"What's it like to die?" asked Sasami, interrupting the conversation.

The table grew silent. It was question that had visited all their minds at one point or another. Death was a mystery even the Chousin could not entirely answer and as to what exactly lies beyond it nobody knows. For once Washu would have to get the answer from someone other than herself.

"It depends on the condition and environment one is dying in Sasami," replied Durante, trying to be subtle in his answer as to not upset her. "At times it can be like going to sleep; a great comfort if one is suffering. All your worldly pain taken away and your worries laid to rest before seeing a welcoming glow. At other times death comes without warning, as if someone just blew out the candle or turned off the light switch and then there's nothing. Just blackness. In the end it's a journey all of you must take and get the answer for yourselves."

"But in your case death is an exception," replied Lady Seto. "What was that display of energy we saw earlier? Is that how you're revived?"

"Typically no. What you saw is what we call a regeneration," replied Smith. "When an Immortal's body suffers catastrophic damage to the point it can no longer effectively heal on its own we undergo this process which completely heals the body including old scar tissue. As you saw it involves releasing a great deal of energy which can and will destroy everything around it. That's why I stopped Washu here from getting to Durante otherwise she would have been vaporized."

"What typically happens?" asked Noboyuki.

"Typically our bodies will heal most wounds and injuries without issue," replied Durante. "Gun shots, stab wounds and the like. The beam weaponry that was used against me took far longer to heal than usual however. I surmise that's part of the reason when I was killed my body ended up regenerating upon revival. Usually we just wake up healed and off we go."

"Off you go huh?" replied Ryoko. "How long does it usually take for you to revive or whatever?"

"Sometimes it takes mere minutes," answered Durante. "At other times like last night for instance it took hours and even then it took a regeneration to completely restore me. Haven't had to do one of those for quite a while."

"When was the last time?" asked Katsuhito.

"France, 1916 during the Battle of Verdun. I got caught in an artillery barrage. I wound up crawling into a muddy shell hole nearby until I died and then regenerated."

"But what exactly is this energy?" asked Washu. "I've never seen anything like it before."

"We don't really know," replied Smith. "I guess you could say it's our life force, our power if you will."

"Is there any way you can reproduce it?" asked Washu, her keen interest on the matter becoming apparent. "Is this power only used for regeneration? What about defense or attack?"

"I guess you're really are a scientist Washu," replied Durante, impressed at her dedication to the pursuit of knowledge. "But it's not like I can do it at the drop of a hat or turn back time to give you a personal viewing."

A sly, mischievous grin then appeared on Washu's face, a grin which made everybody in the room grow immediately nervous with the sole exception of Durante who seemed clueless as to what would happen next. Washu turned off the security measure she had installed on the closet and before he knew it Durante was being shoved by Washu through the closet door below the stairs before being transported at impossible speed to the laboratory on the other side. Durante was thrown out of the door as soon as it appeared on the other side, the jingle of the crab bell clearly being heard as he exited while Washu casually walked in behind him, amused at the sight of Durante being strewn about the floor.

"Watch that first step," said Washu as she walked by Durante as he picked himself up off the floor. "It can be a real doozy as they say."

"Yeah no kidding. Where the hell are we exactly?" asked Durante as he looked around in amazement at the sight before him. Washu's laboratory was impossibly ginormous in scale and he still could not fathom how it was possible to fit it all into a broom closet. Washu's lab was is in fact not one lab, but five planets linked together by subspace corridors. Each of these planets were specialized in certain areas of science and have safeguards to prevent unwanted entry but obviously that doesn't stop the likes of Mihoshi from entering and causing mishaps.

"Welcome to the inter-dimensional laboratory of the greatest scientific genius in the universe!" exclaimed Washu with a look of pride as she threw up her hands.

Durante gave her a blank stare before replying, "And that is…?"

"Me you dolt!" replied Washu as she dropped her arms to her sides, flustered and somewhat annoyed at his response. She was quick to remember however that Durante was still an Earthling and had never heard of her before today let alone her famous self-proclaimed title of being the greatest scientific genius in the universe.

"So this is another dimension?" asked Durante as he walked passed Washu and continued to look around at her laboratory in awe. He recalled Ryoko's words from the previous night and determined she was right. He had no idea what he was getting into with this woman.

"Well no not quite," replied Washu. "I said inter-dimensional if you recall. We are still in our own third dimension, another solar system to be precise. The closet at the house connects with my laboratory via another dimension, similar to a bridge spanning over a river."

Durante turned back to her with a look of shock, "Did you say another solar system!?"

"Yes I said another solar system, far away from the Earth," replied Washu before she waved her hand and a section of wall in the lab turned to black, revealing the space outside. "Here take a look if you want."

Durante cautiously approached the wall, not sure if it was really solid because of how clear it was before he placed his hand on the glass, feeling the coldness of space from the other side. He looked out in awe at the red dwarf star they were orbiting along with the other planets and what seemed to be an endless sea of twinkling stars with an array of colors and for a time Durante just stood there and watched, completely captivated by the scenic spectacle. He did not even take notice of the fact the others with the exception of Vincere who remained behind had entered the lab from the inter-dimensional doorway and were all standing behind him with Washu, just as curious to his reaction as she was. To them the sight of space was really nothing spectacular, witnessing it having become a common event in their lives. However for a man like Durante who still a member of a developing civilization that had only just begun to reach for the stars it was a very humbling and eye-opening experience. Never before had he witnessed a scene of such beauty and never before had he felt so small and insignificant.

"When I was a boy," said Durante as the others listened to his words. "I used to look up into the night sky and wonder how the stars got there. I thought perhaps the gods merely poked pinholes into the curtain of night and in the morning Helios would bring forth the rising sun with his chariot and make them disappear. I never dared to believe that one day that I would be actually standing amongst them."

Suddenly the moment was ruined as from behind Durante could hear a woman blubbering and turned around to see Mihoshi's face covered in tears with the rest of the group looking at her, a little embarrassed by her display.

"That was so beautiful!" Mihoshi cried aloud as she wiped her tears away with a handkerchief that Katsuhito had given her.

"Yes quite touching but it's time for us to get down to business," said Washu as she began to walk away, her usual aloofness having returning to her now that she was focused on the current task. "If you'll all follow me!"

Durante and the others all followed Washu deeper into her lab for what seemed miles before they finally came to a large domed shaped machine. She opened the door and everyone followed her inside. They were completely surrounded on all sides by screens with a reclining chair in the center of the structure.

"This…," began Washu as she gestured to the machine with her hand. "Is my amazing Memory Machine! With it I can read and project the memories of anyone connected to the machine on the screens around us as they relive it."

"But why do you need to see my memories?" asked Durante. "For what purpose?"

"Like you said you can't reproduce the regeneration at will and I want more data on it," replied Washu. "This machine not only allows me to see those memories but unlock them to their full potential. You'll re-experience past events as if you were actually there and so will your body."

"I have no desire to re-live such memories. And believe me when I say you don't want to see them either."

Durante then began to make for the door before Washu snapped her fingers and it closed shut right in his face and disappeared. He tried looking for a way to open it but it was no use, he was trapped.

"Once we're done you're free to leave but until then you'll remain here until I get what I want. I think after what you put me through last night and this morning you owe me that much."

"Fine, but I fear you will regret it." Durante walked back over to the reclining chair. "Let Sasami out first, what you will see is not meant for the eyes of children. Now what do you need me to do?"

"Just take off your shirt and sit back in the recliner," answered Washu as she opened her terminal and began prepping the machine. "I'll take care of the rest."

Sasami was sent out of the dome with Ryo-Ohki for company while the others stayed out of Washu's way while she administered to Durante in the recliner, attaching all sorts of devices to his chest and head to monitor his body's reaction, his vitals as well as to access his memories. When she was finished she started to walk away when Durante grabbed her hand, catching her attention.

"Promise me if it becomes too much to bear you'll pull the plug," said Durante in his native tongue, not wanting the others to understand his words.

"Don't worry," she replied. "You'll be fine. I won't let it get that far."

"No, not for my sake." Durante squeezed her hand. "For yours. I don't want to hurt you anymore than I have. If it becomes too much for you promise me you'll turn it off."

Washu gave him a gentle smile. Even now he was trying to protect her even though he was the one who would be reliving potentially traumatic experiences. It was sweet but also bothersome at this point while she was trying to work. She pulled her hand away and reassured him she'd be fine before taking a few steps back and opening her terminal to activate the machine while Lady Seto and the two empresses took note of the tenderness that seemingly existed between the two individuals. The dome then grew dark as the machine put Durante into a trance like state before the screens flickered to life and images began to cycle back and forth. Strewn across all them was Durante's entire life experience to date along with his long, fierce history of combat. They saw his memories stretching back to ancient Rome and the empire he helped to create along with its eventual fall before moving onto the wars he participated in afterwards. All the way from wielding a sword and shield to the black powder age and onto the modern industrial age they saw Durante fall again and again only to rise once more and re-enter the fray. Not only did they see his own pain and suffering but also what he inflicted upon others as well. One thing they noticed however that was constant was his dedication to the men he served and fought with. In almost every conflict he was always out in front leading them on and did his best to keep them alive. Never an instance of cowardice in the face of his enemies and he never let up, always giving it his all. Durante's witnesses however could not understand why he almost continuously chose to put himself in harm's way, it seemed completely insane to them that anyone would willingly subjugate themselves to the same bloody experiences over and over again. To them it looked more like punishment than anything else, a vision of a never ending personal hell they had no desire to partake in. Eventually Washu had Durante concentrate on what he had he had described to her of his earlier regeneration in France and the screens stopped cycling images before focusing in on just the one memory as the machine accessed it. It was an experience that not only would come to haunt Durante once again but all those who had failed to heed his warning.

 **-VERDUN, FRANCE 1916-**

Durante trudged knee deep through the muddy trench turned quagmire as the cold, heavy rain continued to beat down on him, the sound of its impact ringing off of his helmet. He was completely soaked from head to toe in his sky blue officer's uniform of the French Army which was weighed down by not only the absorption of water from the rain but also the sticky mud which seemed to latch on anywhere it could and sucked him down into the earth with every step. From the rear the sounds of artillery pieces firing could clearly be heard, their shells screaming overhead before impacting on the other side of no man's land; that small, deadly space that was no more than few hundred yards between their lines and the Germans. As he continued to make his away over to his company's assembly area he looked at the miserable, bleak faces of the men he passed as they shivered in the cold rain and coughed from pneumonia and other diseases. Many of them were young and getting younger every month as the casualties continued to mount, the slaughter never ending. Once the barrage had lifted the attack would begin and in their hearts the men knew that for many of them this would be their last hour on earth. They tried their best to remain upbeat and dry while they waited, using ponchos or digging shelters into the sides of the trench to get out of the rain. They also took the opportunity to smoke, eat, or read letters from home; from fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, sweethearts and wives. They all had somebody wishing them safety and waiting for them to return home of which many would not. Durante had no such luxury however, he had only himself and there was no one waiting for him back home as he had no real home to return to. He was far more concerned for the welfare of his men in this muddy hell while at the same time getting them ready for the upcoming attack.

Before long he finally found his company, his men rising to their feet as he walked by. Many of them knew what he really was; having seen him physically injured or killed more than once and then be resurrected to return and stand by their side and lead them on once more. For his staunch dedication his men held him in the highest regard, some going as far to believe he was a guardian angel sent by God himself to protect and lead them to victory over the Germans. Out of respect his men kept the secret of his immortality within the company itself and did their best to dispel any rumors. Durante looked down at his wrist watch and saw the time was five till. At 10:00 AM the barrage would lift and the attack would begin all across the line. He called for his men to put away their personal items and make their way up to the firing steps and fix bayonets before ordering them to charge a single round into the chamber of their Lebel bolt action rifles. Just before the last shells of the barrage flew over their heads and impacted the rain finally came to a stop, offering a rare reprieve and one less burden to bear before they went over the top.

"Boys," Durante yelled aloud as he scanned the faces of his men. "You all know who I am and what I expect at this point. Forget fighting for your flag, your country or your family back home. Fight for each other and come back alive, for that is your true victory. To survive! And as always I will be out there in front leading you on! Look to me as your colors and advance with speed!"

When Durante finished speaking he took the Luger pistol out of his holster and pulled back on the toggle link action, readying the gun for firing before holstering it again. He had been fortunate enough to capture it off of a dead German colonel in the last attack and preferred it to the clumsy revolver he had before despite the protests from his superiors. His men made an opening for Durante on the firing line and as always he would be the first over the top. The barrage finally lifted and for a brief moment only an ominous silence could be heard before a symphony of trench whistles blew up and down the French lines signaling the start of the attack. Durante shouted for his men to follow him and no sooner had the first of them clambered over the trench wall did the killing start. Machine guns and rifles all up and down the German lines barked to life and began to belch out death at the French soldiers in blue. A great cry went up as men began to be cut down in droves as they made their way across no man's land, dropping to the ground as if a pair of scissors had cut the strings off of a marionette puppet. It was soon joined by shelling from German artillery batteries and mortars, making even more craters in the already heavily scarred, muddy earth as the explosions torn men apart. Durante continued to lead his men forward as bullets whizzed by and shells shrieked overhead before detonating and showering the attackers in damp, loose, blood soaked soil. One by one his men continued to fall victim to the relentless onslaught of enemy fire before finally after what seemed an eternity they reached the tangled, twisted, nightmarish metal of barbed wire with which coupled with the mud stopped many men in their tracks as they were raked by machine gun and rifle fire. Many of the Frenchman were killed while getting entangled, their mangled bodies caught in the wire and hanging over the ground in grotesque poses. Those who got close enough to the German trenches lobbed grenades in vain attempts to knock out the machine gun emplacements or at the very least take some of the enemy with them before they were killed.

At this point the German resistance had broken the back of the French attack and a general retreat was sounded though men in blue were already turning and running for their very lives to reach the safety of their own trenches. Durante ordered his surviving men to fall back and was following close behind before a stray artillery shell exploded almost right on top of them, the shrapnel piercing through their bodies like a hot knife through butter and killing all the men in front of him. The concussion of the blast sent Durante flying back onto the ground, gasping for oxygen as the air had been sucked out of his lungs leaving him unable to scream out as pain shot up and down his entire body. His uniform was in tatters and his body had been torn to shreds, most notably his legs which were completely mangled and left him unable to walk. As he writhed on the ground in inconsolable pain and misery Durante worked to collect himself and eventually make an effort to get to cover and painfully began to crawl toward the crater that had just been created by the exploding shell that crippled him. He was bleeding profusely from every injury including his ears which had been ruptured by the blast and had left him virtually deaf. He eventually reached the outer rim of the crater and pulled himself in as the chaos of the French retreat continued around him; gunfire and artillery continuing to harass them every step of the way. He slid down the muddy crater before managing to turn himself over, propping himself up against the crater wall, his breathing becoming more labored as his body worked to keep him alive. Durante stared up into the dull, grey cloud covered sky as he waited for death to take him once again though with each death he wondered if it would truly be his last. After so many centuries he still had no real exact understanding as to what he really was and how his resurrections worked but it was certainly possible that after taking so much damage his body would not be able to recover. This thought crossed his mind as he laid in the mud cold, alone and in great pain with no one nearby to ease or even witness his passing.

Slowly Durante reached into his overcoat and pulled out a worn, blood soaked envelope which he struggled to open before pulling out a folded piece of paper. He opened it with as much care as he could muster, his damp and bloody hands staining it as he did so before revealing a sketch of a young woman. It had been drawn by one of the men in his company, a man named Andre. He was a street artist who had made a simple living before the war doing portraits in Paris for tourists under the Eiffel Tower. Durante had confided to him his dreams of the red haired woman and he had offered to draw her based off Durante's description. A short time later the man was killed in a gas attack and Durante saw to personally recover and bury his body as payment for his earlier kindness. Durante looked over the sketch of the woman as he slowly bled out, memorizing it as he had so many times before. In this never ending hell she was the most beautiful thing he could behold to take his mind off of the fighting. She was young, her clothing strange while her hair was wild and plentiful but her youthful face was one full of sadness. His men had caught him more than once looking at the sketch and asked if she was his wife or girl back home to which Durante had replied with the truth; she was but a dream.

As he continued to look at the sketch Durante's breathing began to slow and his eyes grow heavy before at last his remaining strength left him and he slumped over on to his side, the sketch in his hand falling to the muddy ground. Later during an evening artillery barrage a bright light would be seen emanating into the sky drawing the attention and awe of the men in the trenches to such an extent that the fighting in the area was brought to a standstill. Rumors and reports would later say a man walked out of no man's land and back to the French lines without so much as a scratch.


	7. Chapter VI- Confessions

Durante began to convulse violently on the recliner as Ryoko and Katsuhito struggled to keep him pinned down while Washu frantically typed away on her terminal. Something had gone wrong the instant Durante began to relive the regeneration he had undergone in France during the First World War. His vitals and brain waves were off the charts as his mind struggled with the experience; the living memory of dying and being regenerated being simply too much for him to bear before Washu finally shut the machine down. In a rage Durante cast off the grasps of Ryoko and Katsuhito, sending them tumbling to the ground as he began to tear off all the monitoring cables and equipment strapped to his body and head. Washu rushed over to help him up out of the recliner but Durante shoved her aside before clutching his head with his hands. His whole body began to shutter and shake uncontrollably as he started muttering to himself in an indecipherable babble before erupting into a fit of yelling.

"The shelling…the shelling!" Durante cried out. "Make it stop! Please!"

The shaking became so bad he collapsed to the ground as he continued to cry out about the shelling while he clutched his head, covering his ears. No one in the room had ever seen such a thing before; a man suddenly falling to pieces in such a way. Washu opened the door to the dome and ordered everyone out while she and Ryoko stayed with Durante to help calm him down.

"What's wrong with him?" asked Ryoko as she struggled to hold down Durante as he flailed about while Washu conducted a physical exam.

"I don't know for sure, I've never seen a reaction like this before," replied Washu as she used a small light to check his eyes. "It's possible his mind is still immersed in his past experiences, acting them out as if he was still there."

As Washu continued to try to work out the cause of Durante's sudden mental collapse Vincere had entered the laboratory, having wondered around trying to find the others for the last thirty minutes or so until he at last discovered their group loitering around outside the dome.

"What's all this about?" asked Vincere as walked up to the group, curious as to why they were all standing around. "Where are the love birds? Are they inside playing doctor?"

Vincere gave a laugh before he realized the others did not share his sense of humor, their faces grim and sickly looking as they gave him a cold stare in reply. They were all still processing the images they had witnessed from Durante's life before he collapsed to the ground, trying to understand how and why someone could willingly live such a violent existence. A life of constant battle, death and bloodshed. To fight, to die, to then come back only to suffer through it all over again. It was nothing short of insanity to them. Vincere then heard the commotion coming from inside the dome; the sounds of someone struggling and yelling. He walked inside the dome and saw a sight he had not seen since the end of the First World War; his brother on the ground screaming about endless shelling from artillery barrages. It had taken years of psychiatric work at a military hospital deep in the Devon countryside of Britain to cure Durante of his mental ailments. Now it seems that in one, small secession with Washu to discover the secrets of his regeneration all that work had been completely undone.

"What the hell have you done to him!?" yelled Vincere. He stood over the two women, the rage in his face all too apparent as he glared down at Ryoko who was still holding down Durante as he continued to thrash about and mumble to himself. Washu paid him no mind and continued to type away on her terminal, going back through her data to try to discover the source of Durante's disorder.

"Ask Washu," replied Ryoko as she pushed Durante's arms back down. "She was the one who scanned his memories."

"Memories? Memories of what?"

"Of a place in France called Verdun or something like that. Durante said he had regenerated there during some war."

Vincere's face went white. Verdun. He had been lucky to avoid that hell since he was with the US expeditionary forces which came in late to the war while Durante had been fighting for almost four years. After the armistice was signed in 1918 Vincere had tracked his brother down to a military hospital in Paris where he was being treated for severe shell shock or PTSD as it's now known to the world. The doctors there had been using shock therapy to try to cure him but to no avail. Vincere had secured his release and relocated him to a British hospital in Devon where more proven and humane methods were being tried and conducted. It had taken three years but Durante eventually recovered and regained his sanity. For a time after he lived in peace on a farm in southern France before the Second World War started up and he returned to the battlefield once again. Vincere grabbed Washu by her arm and ripped her up from off the floor, snapping her back to attention.

"You took him back to Verdun!? Do you have any idea what you've done to him!?" Vincere didn't gave damn who or what she was at this point. She had crossed the line and brought harm to the only family he had left in this world. Washu yanked her arm from his grasp.

"I wanted to know more about his regeneration process," replied Washu. "Since I didn't have the heart to kill him to see it again I thought this would be safer. I was wrong and now I'm doing my best to help him. If you know what's wrong with him then please share whatever information you have."

Vincere could see the regret and concern in Washu's face for his brother's well-being and determined it was genuine. He took a deep breath and buried away his anger towards her, deciding to help her instead.

"It's shell shock," said Vincere as he knelt down and grasped his brother's hand. "Severe shell shock. The result of being rotated in and out of the trenches for almost four years while being surrounded by constant death and destruction coupled with near endless shelling from artillery."

Vincere looked up at Washu. "Sometimes the worst battles are in our own minds. Even a man as strong willed and robust as Durante has limits and he found his in France." He looked back down at his brother who had ripped away his hand from Vincere's grasp and was weeping uncontrollably, his face buried into his hands as his body continued to shake. "Though he escaped its shells Durante and an entire generation of young men were destroyed by that damn war."

"How was he cured the last time?" asked Ryoko. She had released her grasp on Durante and looked down at the wretched creature in front of her, feeling nothing but pity. She could relate however, having had similar episodes when her memory relived past horrors committed while under Kagato's control. Washu had done her best to suppress those memories for Ryoko, even going as far as to erase the worst of them.

"He was cured by a man named Arthur Hurst, a physician and major in the British Army who honestly believed he could cure every case of shell shock. Durante was his toughest case by far and Arthur was one of the few to learn who and what we really were. Through a treatment of hypnosis, persuasion, and physical therapy that lasted three years he was able to cure my brother. Now all his labors are undone no thanks to you."

Washu looked down at Durante. The strong, courageous man who had selflessly put himself between her and her enemies was now a shuddering shell of his former self; immersed in his own inner torment that was reflected by his streaming tears. Washu got down on her knees and took hold of one of Durante's hands, gently pulling them away from his face and causing him to look up at her. She stared back into the face of this broken man, a look strewn across it she had never seen him display before. It was one of genuine fear; sheer terror while mere hours ago he had not shown even a trace of it as he faced his death head on. After the events of last night Washu did not doubt Durante's reckless courage or skill in battle but because of his brutal actions and his lack of difficulty at the taking of human life she thought him to be cold hearted in the purest sense; lacking any and all empathy or emotion towards people. However as she looked upon him she now understood what Vincere had meant by the worst battles being in one's own mind. It wasn't just the effects of the war he had fought in that had caused his mental deterioration but an internal conflict of conscience as well. A heart of stone could not shed tears like the ones he was shedding now. It truth part of Washu was relieved to see that underneath all that exterior armor there was a real human being inside after all but she didn't want to see it displayed in a manner such as this nor be the cause of it.

As Washu continued looking into Durante's face she could see he was getting worse; his eyes seemed to look straight through her as if she were ghost and she could see he was utterly alone in his internal struggle. She felt she had to do something beyond burying her face in her terminal and sorting through mounds of data; science didn't always have the answers or solutions. A friendly smile appeared on her face before she grabbed hold of him and leaned his head against her breast, cradling him in her arms as he continued to weep. She started to hum a song from long ago, the same one she had been humming when the two had first met under the Royal Tree Funaho in the hope it might take him mind off past horrors. As she continued her tune Durante slowly began to quiet down, Washu's warm embrace and soothing voice helping to calm him. Vincere was somewhat taken aback by his brother's reaction. Not even Hurst had been able to quell Durante's nerves during one of his episodes; they simply let him have it out until he had exhausted himself. It was at this point Vincere realized the affect this woman had on his brother, like no other ever had before. He had always joked and teased Durante about the woman in his dreams, thinking it childish he had held onto it for so long but now thinking back to the moment the two shared in the fields earlier that morning and to the one currently before him the pair seemed to share some sort of relationship though how far it went he did not know. He doubted a woman such as Washu was in love with a man like Durante but she seemed to genuinely care about his well-being. Most people in the past couldn't have cared less.

Vincere and Ryoko looked on as Washu continued to calm Durante who by now had become silent and was clutching at her blouse like a child to his mother, still shaking like a leaf. Ryoko still struggled with the reality that this was the same man she had seen fight and fought with side by side only hours ago. The same one she had watched on the screens willingly engage in countless battles and wars. She thought he was truly unbreakable but now she saw the truth. No one could possibly endure so much pain and suffering and come out unscathed. Unbeknownst to them however Sasami was behind them peeking in through the open door way while the rest of the group waited outside talking amongst them about what they had seen inside the dome. She was curious to know what had caused such a disturbance and how it could bring down a man like Durante. Moreover Tsunami, the goddess whom Sasami served as an avatar for (though they would eventually meld into one being) was very keen to know more about Durante and was beckoning Sasami to do just that. She waited until the opportunity presented itself and it came when Washu had calmed Durante to the point she and Vincere could coerce him back into the recliner to try to reverse the effects of the earlier session. When their backs were turned Sasami ran into the dome and reached out with her hand to touch Durante's temple, Ryoko being too late to stop her. Upon physical contact a surge of memories from Durante's past experiences rushed into Sasami's mind all at once and almost overwhelmed her but Tsunami stemmed the flow. She could feel the dark emotions emanating from Durante's mind and the inner torment he was suffering and willed Tsunami to help him who in turn suppressed his past memories of the "Great War" deep into his mind before he finally passed out.

Sasami pulled away her hand and collapsed to the ground amid the flurry of new emotions and experiences flooding into her mind. It was simply too much for her to bear as she began to cry though she tried her best to refrain from doing so. The commotion had caught the attention of the others outside and they came rushing in, Misaki being the first to come to her daughter's aid.

"Sasami!?" Misaki dropped to her knees and placed her hands on her daughter's shoulders. "What happened!? Are you alright!?"

"It looks like Tsunami read Durante's mind," replied Washu as she examined Sasami for any sign of injury. "Unfortunately it seems so did Sasami."

"So…so dark," uttered Sasami as she calmed down, wiping the tears from her face while the others listened. "His soul is so dark; it's drowning in the blood of others. So many have died by his hand. Both friend and enemy; guilty and innocent. None have gone unscathed in his wake."

Washu and the others realized it was Tsunami speaking through Sasami rather than the young girl herself but they didn't interrupt, continuing to listen to her words. So far Washu didn't like what she was hearing at all. Even though she had gotten to know Durante somewhat in the short time he had been at the house she had mixed feelings on what exactly to make of the man. She found him to be fascinating in regards to his recently revealed abilities but as a person his violent past troubled her deeply. It was simply something she could not ignore.

"Powerful hatred and rage swirl within him," continued Tsunami as the body she inhabited rose to its feet. "They are so powerful than I can't tell whether or not it's actually sadness. More than anything he desires death; a death from which he will not recover. That's why he's here, that is his endgame."

"Endgame?" asked Washu. "What endgame?"

"He plans to kill the one called Muller, this you know. What you don't know is that he intends to destroy himself no matter the outcome," replied Tsunami. "He's determined to do so despite the internal conflict now raging within him."

"Internal conflict? What sort of conflict?" asked Ryoko.

"A conflict of the heart." Sasami turned her gaze to Durante. "He has found something he had long since given up hope of ever finding but his higher sense of duty is preventing him from embracing it. The result is he is in despair; a kind of despair he has never experienced before. "

"What is it exactly that he has found?" asked Lady Funaho.

Sasami turned her gaze towards Lady Funaho. "He found that which vexes all men."

"And what pray tell _"vexes"_ all men?" asked Lady Seto. She was still unsettled about the fact a goddess who had a hand in creating the known universe was using her granddaughter as an avatar but even more so that Washu may have captured the interest of Durante and vice versa. To her it was not only an unacceptable prospect that the two were romantically involved but terrifying as well given the power Durante had displayed earlier. His addition to the household would not only make the consolidation of power there that much more threatening to Jurai but Seto also saw his value as a potential asset in order to counter this potential threat. An asset she was determined to secure for Jurai.

"A woman," said Vincere aloud before he cast a quick glance at Washu and then back to Sasami. "Am I right?"

Before Tsunami could reply Durante began to stir in the recliner and the Chousin retreated, taking the memories she had siphoned from Durante with her and allowing Sasami to forget them before letting her resume control of her body. Washu turned her attention back to Durante and to see what condition he was in.

As he started to come around Durante slowly sat up, rubbing his temple with his hand to quell his splitting headache. "What…what happened?"

Washu could see that Durante did not remember anything about had happened previously, assuming Tsunami had something to do with it and chose to remain silent on the matter. She knew how proud a man he was and for him to discover she and the others saw him in so vulnerable a state would only serve to damage him further.

"You passed out during the procedure but you seem to be alright now," said Washu as she looked him over once more.

"Passed out?" said Durante who was still dazed from whatever it was Tsunami had done to him. "How long was I out?"

"For about an hour or so, nothing to worry about. What do you remember?"

Durante rubbed his eyes. "I remember…mud and trenches but beyond that nothing else. Is that normal?"

"Yes it's perfectly normal. Nothing to worry about!" said Washu gleefully, doing her best to cover up her lie. Her mask for the world was back on, she didn't want Durante or the others to see the worry and guilt she was already doing her best to hide from view.

Durante proceeded to get out of the recliner but Washu insisted he lie back down and rest, an order he promptly ignored and proceeded to get up anyway. He had seen her and the others to safety at the shrine on top of giving Washu what she wanted with her strange machine and now it was time to turn his attention back to his task at hand. He would not be distracted from it anymore. Not by fabulous new technologies, aliens from outer space or even the woman from his dreams. He came here to do one thing and he would see it done. As he put his shirt back on and began to walk away Washu stepped in front of him, blocking his path and poking her finger into his chest.

"I _said_ you need to lie down and rest." Washu had a determined look on her face and certainly didn't appreciate him blowing her off in front of everybody. "You're in no condition to be walking around."

"I'll keep that in mind," replied Durante as he brushed by her, once again ignoring her order. "Now if we're done here I have my own business to attend to."

"And what business would that be? More killing?" replied Washu as she folded her arms.

"It's not yours or anyone else's affair Washu, so stay out of it."

"And after you kill Muller you'll destroy yourself is that it!?" Washu yelled back. "Is that why you came here? Just to die?"

Durante turned back to Washu, seemingly taken aback for a moment. He assumed she came to know this fact via her machine. He walked aggressively towards her, forcing her to take a couple of steps back before they came face to face.

"And I'm not going to tell you again, stay out of it!" Durante turned to face the others. "All of you! This is my fight and I'm going to finish it one way or another so stay the hell out of my way!"

Durante then turned to Vincere, directing him to show him out of the lab and back to the house in order to commence his preparations for his assault on Muller.

Washu said nothing in return. She knew she could easily stop him but he'd never forgive her if she did and there was no telling what he was willing to do to resist. Even if she did stop him she couldn't keep him detained forever. On the one hand she knew he had a right to go after a man like Muller but on the other she didn't want Durante to kill himself. She didn't know what to do but then Vincere intervened and decided for her. He came in from behind Durante and got his brother in a choke hold, forcing him to the ground. The two began to wrestle with one another violently before Vincere pulled a device from his pocket and injected it into Durante's neck, immediately sedating him and ending the struggle. Washu and the others were surprised by his sudden intervention.

"Like you said Washu…," started Vincere as he picked himself up off the floor and straightened his tie. "He needs to rest. Now let's get him to bed." 

* * *

Durante awoke suddenly in a bed he did not know and in a room he did not recognize, once again hooked up to wires and machines that were monitoring his condition. He felt very light headed, no doubt from whatever Vincere used on him.

"I see you're finally awake," said a voice.

Durante looked to his side and saw Washu sitting with her legs crossed on what appeared to be a floating pillow, her holographic terminal open in front of her.

"How long have I been out?" asked Durante as he rubbed his eyes.

"Not very long, a few hours roughly," said Washu as she got up from her seat and walked over to Durante, checking his vitals. "Hmmm you seem to be recovering fairly quickly. That sedative Vincere used should have put you under for much longer. Interesting…"

"Where am I exactly? I don't recognize this room."

"You're in my room or rather the other house I use when I'm too busy working and need a place to sleep and relax. That and because here we won't be disturbed."

"Other house? Disturbed? By who?"

"The house is located on one of the planets I use for my vast laboratory. And by disturbed I mean by Lady Seto. She was most insistent that I take you to her ship for further examination; you left quite the impression on her. Luckily for you my word carries considerable weight and I convinced her otherwise. That and because I wanted us to have a chance to talk in private."

Durante sat up on the bed and attempted to get out when he lifted the sheet and felt a sudden breeze. He looked down and his eyes grew wide.

"Wait, where are my clothes? Why the hell am I naked!?"

"Oh that," said Washu casually as she walked back to her floating pillow and sat down before resuming her work on her terminal. "I was just examining your body, that's all."

"Examining my body!? You could have gotten my consent first!"

Washu turned to him. "Well that's kind of hard when you're unconscious but don't worry you have nothing to be embarrassed about! You're quite the specimen!"

Durante's face turned red as he replied, "I'm _not_ embarrassed! And I'm not some sort of damned science experiment."

Washu giggled. "No you're my newest guinea pig!"

"Stop messing around Washu. What is it you wanted to talk about? I still have some business to take care of."

The smile from Washu's face disappeared. The man was always so serious, she wish he would loosen up a bit.

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about Durante. I want you to forget your _business_. I want you to forget about going after that man."

"Don't ask me to do that!" snapped Durante. "Just don't do it!"

"Why? Why won't you just let it go? Why not let Vincere take care of it?"

"Have you ever seen a death camp? Do you have an idea what it's like to find mounds of bodies of men, women and children!? To have a man dying of starvation pass away in your arms!? Then discover the man who masterminded it all was someone you once called a friend, a brother in arms!?"

"No I…I guess I don't," said Washu. She could see the emotion in his face. Tsunami was right; he was consumed with hatred and rage but she knew it was also justified. She knew the feeling because Kagato had betrayed her and committed atrocities as well. "But why is it you want to destroy yourself? Why do you hate yourself so much?"

Durante hung his head low, unable to look Washu in the eyes. Was he really that transparent? He could not avoid it any longer. "Because Muller and I are the same. I'm no better than he is."

"What do you mean? How are you the same?"

"I've done unbelievable things…horrible things in the name of the country I loved so much. I took the darkest path into the deepest hell to protect my own. To protect Rome and make it great along with her people, but in the end it was all for nothing. Rome fell and for all those things I've done along with what I've lost I've condemned myself to death. I just want it all to end."

Washu finally understood at last why he was so eager to die. He had lost everything, done things he simply could no longer live with. Washu struggled however to accept Durante was as vile a man as he claimed to be and part of her refused to allow him to submit to such a self-imposed fate even if what he was saying was true. Redemption was never out of reach, even for one who had fallen so far.

Washu shot up from her seat and stood over Durante, ready to berate him. "I believed you to be many things Durante bet never a coward! Do you think you're the only one who's lost everything or made decisions in life they lived to regret!?"

Durante flinched at her scolding and his head sunk lower, seemingly ashamed while Washu continued on.

"I've lost and done things I regret as well, more than you can possibly know! I did my best to rectify my past mistakes and move on but I never once thought of giving up! It takes real strength and courage to keep going in spite of how heavy our burdens are on our shoulders!"

Durante lifted his head and looked at Washu as she stood over him. He could tell she was telling the truth, the pain in her eyes was exactly the same as his own. The only difference was she sought to persevere and continue on with life rather submit to her own demons and had done so for the last 20,000 years. Durante couldn't help but admire her for that; she was far stronger than he could ever hope to be.

"It's not that easy!" Durante shouted back.

"It _is_ that easy!" Washu took a knee and got to his eye level. "You just have to let go of the past, that's all. Once you do that you can finally overcome your greatest obstacle."

"And what obstacle is that?"

Washu smiled warmly at him. "Yourself Durante. That is the greatest obstacle you will ever face in life. Take it as advice from someone who's been there."

There was wisdom and experience in her words and it was at that moment Durante realized how right she really was. How foolish and selfish he'd been up to this point. All he had really cared about since he had arrived at this place is getting his revenge on Muller instead of seeing what was right in front of him. If he followed through with his original plan to destroy himself he would never see her smiling face again. The thought of it was perhaps the most awful feeling he'd ever had in his life. Washu got to her feet and unhooked all the cables and wires attached to Durante's body before she walked over to the table where she had placed Durante's clothes. She grabbed them before walking back over and tossing them to him.

"Get dressed, I want to show you something," said Washu before she turned away from Durante to give him some privacy.

Durante did as he was told and got dressed before following her out of the bedroom and into the main room of the small farm house. As Washu had mentioned the house they resided in was not on Earth but one of the planets in the solar system she had made into a giant laboratory. The house was located atop a great spire that stretched for miles into the thin atmosphere of the rocky world, capped by a large dome that looked out into the vastness of space. Outside the house itself along with the green fields and trees surrounding it were bathed in artificial sunlight, the whole area a recreation of the farm house Washu had lived in with her family at the Jurai Imperial Academy. Durante looked around at the quaint living room that was filled with a variety of wooden furniture and fixtures, not quite what he was expecting for a woman from the stars. Washu walked over to a table near the main door of the house where there was a multitude of framed pictures. She grabbed two of them before walking over to a couch and invited Durante to sit with her.

"I wanted to show you this," said Washu as she handed Durante one of the framed photographs.

"Is this you?" asked Durante as he looked at the photo. In it there were two women and a man; one holding a baby in her arms with the man standing beside her and the other woman flanking the pair. They were all strangely dressed in what seemed to be some type of uniforms; Durante deduced they were not military but more likely civilian. The one with the baby Durante immediately recognized as being Washu, appearing as young as she was now. The baby had blonde hair and the same emerald green eyes as Washu while the man standing next to her shared the same hair color as the baby. It wasn't hard to guess he was the father. The other woman had white hair and a fair complexion and they all looked very happy together.

"Yes it was, once upon a time," started Washu. "Back when I was still a student at the Jurai Imperial Academy or the Galaxy Academy as it's now known. I met a man, we fell in love and I had a son. However he came from a prestigious family that felt I was too low in status and they pressured him to leave me which he did along with my son. Naja was my best friend and stayed with me for many millennia until she was killed on an archaeological dig during a pirate raid. After that I was so lonely and in despair I cloned Naja who in turn became Kagato. He helped me create Ryoko and Ryo-Ohki before betraying me and using my daughters as slaves for his own vile and destructive purposes."

Washu then handed him the other picture and he saw it was group photo featuring Washu and everyone else in the house along with a few people he did not recognize. Washu did not appear as she did now but rather much younger, as an adolescent from what he could tell. She was hanging off a young man along with a number of other women all trying to apparently kiss him but he seemed to recoil in fear at the prospect and held them at bay.

"This is my new family, the one you fought to protect and keep safe and for that I will always be grateful to you Durante."

"Two questions. How and why do you look so much younger here than you do now? And who is this kid?"

"I have the ability to change my age at will," replied Washu. "As to why…well I'm just more comfortable in that form than in this one. That and I have more energy to work."

"Makes sense…I guess." Washu could see he did not approve of her taking on an adolescent form and could easily guess why. She wasn't blind to the fact the man was attracted to her and most men wouldn't be interested in a young girl save for a lecher but Durante was too proud and honorable to be such a man.

"As for the "kid" that's Tenchi. He's the one that brought all us girls together in the first place. He's also the one who defeated Kagato and secured my freedom."

"Seems hard to believe, looks like a normal kid to me."

"Believe what you want, but he has has a power you couldn't possibly comprehend."

Durante of course still didn't believe it but Washu had never given him a reason to doubt her word. It was irrelevant to him anyway and he didn't press her about it any further.

"Why did you show me this Washu? What's the purpose?"

"I wanted to show you that no matter how bad things become that there's always hope and you can have a future besides a hole in the ground."

"What future can I possibly have?"

"Everybody has a future but it's up to you decide what it will be!" said Washu gleefully. "There is no fate but what we make for ourselves."

"Washu…what if I said I wanted you in that future? Or if I just came out and said it plain as day that if you're not in it then I don't want it?"

The look on his face was serious and Washu could see he really meant it. She looked down at her hands and gripped her shorts, opening and closing her grasp on them as she thought up a response. She'd never met anyone before who was so forward and direct with his intentions. She got up from the couch and paced around for a few moments before responding.

"Durante…," replied Washu as she turned to face him. "Do you know how old I am?"

Durante got to his feet and approached her. "I don't care how old you are but if age is a genuine concern than my rebuttal would be the older the violin the sweeter the music."

Washu opened her mouth to respond but could only give a light laugh. She could see that Durante was the persistent type and would not be dissuaded so easily. It was such a strange feeling having a man chase after her after so many millennia of being alone. She was used to going after Tenchi to garner his affection but now that the roles had been switched on her she was having trouble trying to find a way to repulse his advances. Now she knew how poor Tenchi felt.

"But why me? There has to have been countless other women in your life."

"Well of course I've been with plenty of other women."

Washu saw he was referring to women he's slept with, not loved. "No that's not what I meant. I meant to say I'm sure there was someone special in your life once? A wife perhaps?"

"No," said Durante. His face turned solemn and he diverted his gaze away from her. "Never."

His blunt response struck Washu hard, causing her heart to sink. Life at times had been cruel to her but never that cruel. Nobody, not even Durante deserved so much misfortune or pain in their life.

"Never?" she asked with a low voice.

Durante turned away from her before he sat back down on the couch, his eyes still diverted from her gaze. Washu came and sat beside him, placing her hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry…" said Washu. "I'm sorry you've had so much pain."

"Pain can be controlled," snapped Durante. "After a while you just learn to let it all go, to disconnect."

"So you're saying you feel nothing?"

Durante thought about it for a moment before he responded to her. "I had a picture of you once," he started to say. Washu already knew what he spoke of from the earlier memory scan she performed on him but listened anyway, curious to learn more about it from his point of view.

"Or rather it was a sketch of you from my dreams," he continued on. "At Verdun one of my men listened to my description of you and drew it out for me before he was killed."

Durante turned to face Washu. "You were young and beautiful like you are now but seemed just a little sad. I've always wondered what you were thinking at that moment. I memorized every line, every curve of your face until the paper was worn, the ink ran dry and I died with it in my hands. I lost it forever in that over-sized mud hole in no man's land but I never forgot the image in my mind's eye. I know you've wondered at why it is I do what I do. The best answer I can give is I guess I just like fighting too much but if I had to say what exactly it was I fighting for I'd say it was for you."

"For…me?" said Washu, surprised and puzzled. "Why for me?"

"As ludicrous as it sounds…," said Durante as he worked up the courage to utter the rest of his sentence. "I fought my way across time to find you Washu. I love you, I always have."

Washu just sat there stunned; it was a lot to take in such a short time. Durante had not only admitted to her his past history of violence doing whatever he had to do to all those who resisted or threatened Rome but at the same time also openly declared his deep love for her. It was an awkward situation and she felt numb to it, having never been very good at dealing with her personal feelings towards people. She still had her misgivings about Durante and his arrogance and fierce pride were at times off putting. She found him to be fascinating scientifically but was simply not in love with him. She tried to see it from his point of view rather than her own. Durante had said the night before that he had dreamed about her for his whole life so she could see after such a long stretch of time one could fall in love with a woman from his dreams, especially when that person had lived such a dark, painful life. She was a beacon of hope for him, solace that there was something in life worth fighting and living for. In the end though Washu could not return the affection Durante so desired and felt she had to turn him down before it became any more complicated.

"Durante I don't know what to say," said Washu as she stood up and turned to face him. "How am I supposed to respond to something like that? You just come out and say you love me but you don't really know anything about me nor I you. I mean, I just found out who and what you really are this morning. "

"I do know you, Washu. I've known you for my whole life."

"You know me only through your dreams Durante but you don't actually _know_ who I am. I mean we've only just really met and part of me is still processing the fact you're actually alive and breathing."

Durante rose to his feet and approached her. "Then let me get to know you. No more secrets or masks to hide behind. Let me see the real you."

Washu hesitated. It was moving too fast for her and she felt more had been said that should have been. She simply wasn't willing to open herself up to him in the way he wanted. Fear and doubt filled her mind as she remembered the pain and betrayal she felt when Mikamo left her along with her only son. It had affected her so deeply that she discarded the world of adults along with all the worldly matters that went with them including love, choosing to remain in the form of a child as a symbol of her rejection of that world. With Tenchi she had just started to re-explore those old feelings albeit in her own maniacal way but now she was faced with this entirely new situation.

"I…I can't," said Washu with reluctance. "I can't be what you want me to be Durante, I'm sorry."

Durante stared at her for a moment before a smirk came across his face which worried Washu. It was not the reaction she was expecting in the slightest.

"You think it's that easy huh?" said Durante as he began walking towards Washu who in turn started backing away. "One sentence and just like that I'll give up?"

Durante kept advancing until he backed Washu into a wall and braced his arms on either side of her. She was completely taken aback by his behavior as well as somewhat fearful as to what he'd do next.

Durante was now face to face with her, mere inches away. "You said I don't know you? Well you don't me very well either. I'm persistent as hell and when I want something I'll keep chasing after it until I get it. And what I want is you."

"I…I…uh," stammered Washu as she tried in vain to think of words that would dissuade him but was at a loss. She knew now that Durante would not simply take no for an answer and that it was going to be a challenge to curb his desire for her. Just then an indicator on her wrist started to blink bright red, signaling someone back at the house was trying to contact her. She was relieved for the excuse to get away.

"I…need to take this," said Washu as she pushed her way past Durante who lowered his arms to allow her by. He was satisfied that his intent with Washu was now laid bare in the best way he knew how. Blunt, aggressive and to the point.

Washu summoned up her terminal and a holo-screen appeared in front of her with Sasami's face.

"Washu, Vincere is requesting an update on Durante's condition. Is he alright?"

"Yes he's doing fine; he's up and about in fact."

"Any chance you could make your way back to the house then? Vincere says he needs to speak with Durante immediately about Muller."

Durante walked up behind Washu, poking his head over her shoulder. "We'll be there momentarily after we finish up here."

Washu closed the holo-link and the pair began making their way back towards the main house via a system of elevators and portals. As they traveled the two remained silent, much had happened in the last 24 hours and the private talk they had in Washu's private room had made things even more complicated. Durante gave her a subtle glance and could see how conflicted she was, but chose to remain silent on the matter. In truth her heart was still racing. Durante had unloaded a lot onto her mind and wanted to give her the space and time she needed. It wasn't everyday a man you thought was dead came back to life and revealed his inner most, darkest secrets to you not to mention his undying affection. Whatever happened however Durante was glad to have told her how he truly felt though it had been harder than he expected, more so than the previous battle he had just been through. For now though he needed to turn his attention back to Muller, putting purpose ahead of personal feelings. Durante and Washu eventually made it back to the main house and Durante immediately sought his brother out, leaving Washu behind to think on what they had discussed. Durante found Vincere outside on the main decking overlooking the lake conversing Jurai soldiers and GP officers on what to do with certain alien artifacts left over from the battle.

"There you are Durante, what took you so long?" asked Vincere as he turned to face his brother.

Durante said nothing in response but instead punched his brother in jaw, knocking him to the ground to the surprise of those around him.

"What the hell was that for!?" asked Vincere as he rubbed his jaw.

"That's for attacking me from behind and using that damn sedative of yours on me," replied Durante before he offered his brother his hand and pulled him up.

"Well you were out of control _and_ needed some rest to recuperate from your regeneration. I also got you some alone time with Washu didn't I? That reminds me, you had better get something to eat before we head out."

"We? What do you mean we? I'm doing this alone."

"I'm afraid not," said Lady Seto as she approached the pair, flanked by her body guards. "You may have aided my granddaughter and the others but you still have a lot to answer for. However with the approval of the local government along with Vincere's own you're being allowed to carry out your mission against Muller. After that we will decide what will be done with you."

"If I have so much to answer for then why I am being _allowed_ to carry out my mission? Not that you could stop me anyway."

"Because I'm intrigued by you and your abilities. I want to see what you can do and Vincere here will go along as an observer on my behalf."

"No," said Durante bluntly.

"Excuse me?"

"I said no. I don't give a damn who you are and where you're from, nobody gives me orders."

"Is that so?" replied Lady Seto, annoyed at the man's rudeness. "Perhaps you're not aware of my reputation? I always get my way."

"To me your _reputation_ carries about as much weight as one of corpses I left out there in the fields. If you don't want to end up in a similar condition you'll stay the hell out my way."

Upon saying this all work around them came to a standstill, a look of shock on the faces of everyone within earshot including Lady Seto's bodyguards. Durante didn't know it but he had just threatened one of the most powerful and influential figures within the Juraian Empire. A woman that not even the Emperor of Jurai dared to defy let alone so openly.

One of the guards took a step forward with his weapon drawn on Durante. "You dare to threaten the Devil Princess of Jurai!?"

The commotion drew everyone from within the house outside to see what was going on. Durante said nothing in reply as the guard got closer; he only clenched his right fist before a low rumble began to emanate from him, causing the wood planks around him to vibrate slightly. Everyone around him took a step back and the guard stopped in his tracks, clearly intimidated and uncertain of what the man before him was capable of. Washu took note of it and assumed her original hunch was right; the power of these Immortals was possibly used for attack or defense though what that consisted of was impossible to guess at this point. Rumors had quickly spread amongst the ground personnel of the Earthling that was also responsible for the mass slaughter in the fields and at the shrine but also returned from the dead. Lady Seto had declared it a state secret and all witnesses were sworn to keep that secret under penalty of imprisonment or even death. As the standoff continued Vincere stepped in to defuse the situation once again.

Vincere placed his hand on his brother's shoulder, causing him to relax and withhold his power. "That's enough Durante; the decision has already been made and you have no choice in the matter. I'm coming with you and not because Lady Seto says so. I have just as much of a right to go after him as you; I lost friends because of that bastard and he's going to answer to us, his fellow Immortals. Not the Jurai or any other earthly power. If they want to watch the show what does it matter?"

Durante nodded to him, knowing there was no argument to be made and quietly walked away to go retrieve his arsenal. The bodyguard tried to stop him but Lady Seto told him to stand down and for the on lookers to stop gawking and return to their work. Vincere apologized profusely to Lady Seto for his brother's behavior and begged her pardon which she gave before he ran off to catch up with Durante. She had always liked Smith or rather Vincere for the respect and politeness he displayed towards her but was greatly irked by Durante. It had been centuries since someone dared to openly defy her in public and never had anyone threatened her face to face but she had to admit she admired the man's tenacity and grit. She was now more than certain Durante was exactly what she needed and was determined to recruit him for her own purposes. For now she'd tolerate his insolence.

The two disappeared for hours but eventually returned, rolling up to the front of the house in the white van Durante had taken from the men at the warehouse along with Vincere and his own car. The two began unloading all the weapons, gear and ammo from the back of their vehicles and into the house as the Masaki family and numerous others looked on with curiosity. When they had finished unpacking they laid out their weapons on the dining room table and began field stripping them for cleaning. Washu observed Durante's demeanor; his concentration and focus was solely on the task before him with little regard for anyone or anything else as he cleaned his weapons. In truth she was not supportive at all of what he was about to do but chose not to interfere. His actions were his own and he would bear the consequences for them alone.

After some time they finished cleaning their weapons and performed a function check to ensure proper operation; the sounds of bolts being locked backed and released, triggers being pulled followed by a click as the firing pin fell on an empty chamber made everyone in the house uneasy. Japan was a country that practiced pacifism for the most part to the extent firearms were rarely seen. Now two men were sitting in their living room readying a full arsenal to go after a single man. Where exactly Muller was located Durante would not say but neither would Vincere who decided that going along as backup and an observer was enough for the Jurai. It was a very personal matter to him as well and he wanted to play it as close to the chest as possible. In other words it was Immortal business only and it went beyond personal allegiances to Jurai royalty or even his own country. The two had already gone over their attack plan while they were out and continued readying their weapons and gear in silence, only stopping to have a quick meal.

"Not very talkative are they?" said Lady Funaho as she observed the pair.

Misaki sipped her tea on the couch with the others in a group before replying. "They haven't said a word in hours."

"They're preparing themselves mentally for what's coming," replied Katsuhito before he turned his attention to Washu who was sitting quietly looking out the window. "Speaking of which are you alright Miss Washu? You've been quiet ever since you arrived back at the house. Is something wrong?"

Washu snapped back to attention. In truth she was still deeply troubled by what Durante had confessed to her in private and in her mind she was debating the issue but had no desire to discuss it openly with the others.

"Oh no I'm fine," said Washu with a false smile. "I'm just a bit tired is all."

"Well you've been up for almost twenty four hours. Perhaps you should go upstairs and get some rest?"

"I'm fine I said." Washu got to her feet and headed to the kitchen to get some caffeine into her system, exchanging glances with Durante before disappearing into the doorway.

Durante looked back at Vincere who smirked at him, pleased at the fact his brother had finally taken a real interest in a woman for once though his choice made him seem a bit overly ambitious. The two then rose to their feet, taking their M4 carbines with them. They had decided to carry duplicate load outs in order to better complement one another in terms of available ammunition and firepower. Durante preferred service rifles with a .30 caliber bullet such as with the AK-47 but he would settle for a 5.56mm; exchanging a more powerful round for a lighter, higher velocity round for ensured greater accuracy at intermediate ranges. Plus they could carry more ammunition.

With the sun beginning to set, Durante and Vincere began making their way out to the van to pack up their weapons and gear before heading out. Washu had given Vincere an injection of nano-machines that would allow them to see whatever he saw and record everything in the process though it made him feel light headed but he did his best to get over it. Soon the others came out to see them off but nothing was said. The majority of them felt indifferent about what they were going to do with others being firmly against it but choosing to remain mute on the matter. Washu was one of them.

"All of this just for revenge," said Lady Funaho as she watched Durante continuing to pack the van.

"Can you really blame him though?" commented Ryoko.

"You're mistaken if you think it's revenge he's after," interjected Vincere as walked past with the last of the gear. "It's a reckoning."

"A reckoning?" said Noboyuki. "What do you mean?"

Vincere stopped and turned. "Think of it as a judgment day. He's exacting retribution for Muller's crimes against humanity but he does not carry it out with enthusiasm or joy. The man we're going after is one we once considered a brother, family even. So do not judge what you cannot understand."

Vincere tossed the rest of the gear to Durante who put into the back of the van with the rest before closing the doors. He gave Washu one last glance before he got into the front seat of the van and closed the door. Vincere saw Washu's gaze drop to the ground with a solemn look before she turned and walked away, nothing more being said between them.

Vincere got into the driver's seat and started the van before putting into gear. "Out of curiosity what did you say to Washu exactly?"

Durante looked out the window. "I told her the truth about who and what I am. Nothing more."

Vincere began to drive. "I find that hard to believe. And what else?"

Durante sighed. "I told her that I want her. That I'm in love with her."

Vincere slammed the brakes, bringing the van to a sudden stop. "You did what!?"

"I told her that I'm in love her. What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing except first off you never tell a woman you just met you're in love with her! Are you trying to scare her away? Secondly we just drove off without you saying anything to her! You don't tell a woman you're in love with her and then run off on some suicide mission without saying so much as a word goodbye."

"There's nothing to say."

"Oh bullshit Durante. It's not right and you know it."

"Well what do you want me to tell her Vincere? That we're probably not going to make it? That'll ease her mind I'm sure."

"I don't know what you should tell her Durante but this might be the last time she sees you in this world or you her. So tell her whatever you can because she's entitled to more than you just driving away."

Back at the house the others watched with curiosity as the van came to a stop and for a time it didn't move. Durante then exited the vehicle and began walking down the road towards the house. He appeared nervous and was muttering to himself under his breath. He approached the house and walked past all the others without saying a word before stopping in front of Washu while the rest looked on, curious as to what his intention was.

"I'm…uh…not sure what's worth saying or not," said Durante as he looked at her.

"You don't need to say anything Durante," replied Washu. She was surprised he had taken the time to come all the way back just to talk to her, thinking that his mission took precedence over everything and everyone else.

"No I do," interjected Durante. "Vincere is right about that. He's right about a lot of things. I wanted to say I know I've said and done things since I've been here and that if I hurt you, it's not what I wanted."

Washu just stood there and listened to his words, giving him the time he needed to get everything he wanted to say off his mind. She could tell he was trying to apologize to her though he wasn't very good at it but gave him points for trying anyway.

Durante continued on. "I don't know what you make of me as a man and like I said before I've been places and done things most of them I'm not proud of."

"You're too hard on yourself," said Washu. "I've seen who you are Durante. The way you looked after Nicolai and helped Sasami. Your bravery and selflessness in battle, the respect you give Noboyuki. That might be just little bits but it's enough for anyone to see that you're a good man."

Durante decided to test her. "Men are going to get killed today Washu and I'm going to kill em. You understand that?"

"Yes I understand," replied Washu though she showed no enthusiasm for it. She knew he was doing what he thought to be right and what had to be done but she still didn't approve of it. How could she? Killing was still killing regardless of the reason.

Durante took a step forward, putting himself face to face with the red haired genius. "I want you to know that if I don't ever see you again, if I don't return that I meant every word I said to you and that I appreciate everything you said to me. You gave me hope where I saw none to be had and above all reason to go on. Nothing that's happened here in the last few weeks has been a real surprise except for you."

And with that Durante turned around and began walking back down the dirt road towards the waiting van. As Washu and the others watched him walk away she was reminded of the memory of when she last saw Mikamo walking away her son, never to return. On this instance however she knew there was a real chance Durante would not come back alive but there was something else. In the back of her mind that same feeling of familiarity washed over her, as if it wasn't the first time seeing him depart for battle. She began to walk forward ahead of the others. She opened her mouth to speak but projected no sound. She tried again and this time forced the words out.

"I'll be seeing you Durante Romulus!" she yelled.

Durante turned around to look back at her. He smiled at her and waved goodbye before getting into the van and closing the car door. He looked over at Vincere who was smirking.

"Happy?" said Durante.

Vincere laughed and hit the gas, driving down the road into the setting sun and off to an uncertain fate.


End file.
